It took overtime for UF Head Coach Becky Burleigh to receive her most wanted birthday present, which was delivered by sophomore Ameera Abdullah in the 94^th minute. Abdullah scored the only goal of the match to give No. 21 Florida (9-4-2, 5-1-1 SEC) a 1-0 OT win over Mississippi (7-5-3, 3-1-3 SEC) in front of a James G. Pressly crowd of 1,907.

Heading into Friday’s match, the two teams were one-two in the Southeastern Conference standings. With wins Friday, Florida continues to hold first in the league standings with 16 points while Vanderbilt moved to second at 14 points. South Carolina (13) and Mississippi (12) round out the top four of the current SEC standings.

The game-winning goal started when Stacy Bishop, standing 10 yards above the box, sent a square ball to KeLeigh Hudson. Hudson then passed to the wing, which found Abdullah making a run toward the box. Abdullah took a few touches on the ball and sent it from 16 yards to the upper corner of the far post. Abdullah, who was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday, now owns the UF season goals lead at seven and is second in the UF point lead (15 points) behind Bishop (16).

“My coaches had told me to get wide and stay wide. They were kind of compressing the field then,” Abdullah said. “I saw the ball that KeLeigh had and saw the opportunity to put it through. I just tried to hit it far post and it went in.”

The last time the Gators played a home Friday night match, they also won on a golden goal (2-1 OT over Georgia). Friday’s match was the second consecutive overtime contest for UF. The Gators turned in a 0-0 2OT result last Sunday at Kentucky.

The Gators had a couple of good opportunities in the opening half, both within seconds of each other. The Gators took a corner kick in the 35^th minute and freshman Lauren Hyde took a shot, which was stopped by UM goalkeeper Ann Shelton, but still remained in play. Bishop gathered the loose ball in the box and also took the shot, but it was blocked by a Rebel defender.

In the second half, Abdullah found the ball at the top of the box off a Gator free kick. She took a hard shot in the 60^th minute that bounced off the post. In the 78^th minute, Shana Hudson crossed the ball from the end line, but Bishop’s header was just wide of the far post. Bishop had another opportunity just two minutes later when the Gators were awarded a free kick a few steps above the box. Her shot to the far post bounced in the box and was misjudged by Shelton, but the ball ended up going out of bounds.

“It was really frustrating. It was almost there. We all had shots that just didn’t fall for us,” Abdullah said. “But we could feel it coming and we just kept going. But it was really frustrating.”

UF goalkeeper Brittni Goodwin earned her third consecutive shutout by making some big saves. At 2:24, Goodwin made the save on the Rebels’ first shot of the match, a hard strike by Hannah Weatherly. In the 41^st minute, Christine Breaux’s shot hit the crossbar and bounced back into play just outside the six-yard box. Perryn Tyler gathered the ball and took the shot, but Goodwin made the stop with her outstretched leg. She also turned in a big save in the first part of the second half, making the stop at the corner of the goal on Weatherly’s shot in the 51^st minute.

“I think our team played really well. They did come out pretty strong. Once we settled in, we did a lot better,” Goodwin said. “I’ve got 10 really good players in front of me and that is really comforting.”

Burleigh, who is now 5-0 in matches played on her birthday, commended the Gators on their effort Friday evening.

“We got contributions from all over. Ameera scoring the game-winner was obvious, but I also I thought Daniela (Sanchez) and KeLeigh in the middle of the field were excellent. Bishop held the ball up for us well and the other forwards that went in did well too. Ashlee Elliott played some good minutes tonight and (Angela) Napolitano played some good minutes. It was a real team effort,” Burleigh said. “I don’t think you could pinpoint any one player who changed the game. The backline was very involved in the attack tonight. Brittni came up with a big save in the first half off the crossbar that easily could have changed the game. So from the top to the back, it was a good effort.”

Florida continues its home stand versus SEC Western Division rivals when it meets Mississippi State (2-12, 1-6 SEC) Sunday, Oct. 15 at noon. The Bulldogs lost 1-0 at South Carolina Friday evening. Sunday’s match will be televised live on FSN and also can be heard live on www.GatorZone.com.