Mackenzie Anthony scored her second goal of the game 2:11 into overtime to give No. 5 seed Michigan State a 3-2 win over No. 4 seed Texas on Friday in their NCAA soccer tournament second-round game in Durham, N.C.
MSU junior defender Maddie Illig took a shot from outside the 18-yard box that required a lunging save from Texas goalkeeper Mia Justus. Anthony, a graduate student forward, was the first to attack the rebound opportunity and chipped it over Justus to give MSU (14-2-5) the victory, setting off a celebration by the Spartans.
The win sends MSU into the Sweet 16, where it will play the winner of top-seeded Duke and No. 8 seed Texas Tech at 6 p.m. Sunday.
"What a tough battle," MSU coach Jeff Hosler said. "... It's our first overtime win. In the postseason, it's a pretty crazy experience. I thought we played well enough for long portions of the game to secure the win earlier. Tons of credit to Texas, they kept fighting their way back.
"I'm super thrilled for our team. We've got a lot of experienced players, a lot players that intentionally came back for this weekend specifically."
Anthony started the scoring for MSU in the eighth minute, delivering off a perfect cross from sophomore midfielder Bella Najera on a free kick.
Texas (17-4-2) would answer late in the first half on a goal from Lansing Sexton graduate and SEC Freshman of the Year Amalia Villareal.
After the game was tied 1-1 at halftime and well into the second half, the Spartans broke through in the 72nd minute after several quality scoring chances when Najera finished a pass from senior Gabby Mueller.
Texas again responded with a tying goal six minutes later to level it back up at 2-2.
The Longhorns threatened in the final moments of regulation but didn't possess the ball for any time during the overtime period.
MSU goalkeeper Kaitlyn Parks finished with five saves, as did Justus in goal for the Longhorns.
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