With six games remaining in the season, the LSU soccer team desperately needs to string together Southeastern Conference wins if it hopes to reach the postseason.
LSU (5-7-2, 1-3-1 SEC) is currently tied with Tennessee (6-6-1, 1-3-1 SEC) for 10th in the SEC standings, and only 10 teams will be invited to the conference tournament following the conclusion of the regular season.
The Tigers will get an opportunity to start a much-needed winning streak when they square off against SEC West foe Alabama (7-4-2, 2-2-1 SEC) at 6 p.m. tonight at LSU Soccer Stadium.
Tonight’s match will also be televised on the SEC Network.
Despite watching his club collect just one win in its past seven games, LSU soccer coach Brian Lee said making the SEC and NCAA tournaments are still reasonable possibilities.
“I think at any point, if we get to .500, we’re going to have a great chance,” Lee said. “The teams we have left are all top 83, and a bunch of them are in the top 50. So I think it’s a real possibility. We just have to get on a little run of wins.”
Winning tonight against Alabama would be a good start — the Crimson Tide is currently sixth in the SEC entering tonight’s match but is only one game ahead of LSU. A win tonight would catapult the Tigers into that slot with five games remaining and give them the tie breaker if both teams finish with identical records.
However, victories have been few and far between for the Tigers for much of the 2014 season. LSU has won only twice in the past 10 games after starting the season with a 3-1 record, notching two ties and six defeats in that span.
But the Tigers haven’t been completely dominated on the pitch this season. Four of LSU’s seven losses this season were decided by one goal. Three of those one-goal defeats came against teams currently ranked in the top 60 of the Rating Percentage Index standings, including Sunday’s 1-0 loss to No. 13 South Carolina.
The defeat quickly erased the momentum the Tigers had built following their 2-0 victory against Mississippi State two days prior. LSU pressured the Bulldogs throughout the night and fired off 16 shots with 10 on target, which was the most since Sept. 8 against Stephen F. Austin.
“We definitely got a lot of chances on goal [against Mississippi State],” said junior midfielder Natalia Gomez-Junco. “Some were kind of unfortunate to not go in, but the thing is, we were there. We got the crosses and got shots, and that’s important. We just have to put those chances off in the next game, because we might not get that many chances.”
Despite its offensive struggles against the Gamecocks, LSU’s young back line held firm on Sunday. The Tigers’ defense — which starts two freshmen, a sophomore and junior — limited South Carolina to only three shots on target off of 16 shots.
LSU sophomore forward Summer Clarke said it was the unit’s best collective performance to date, which could bode well for the remaining six matches left on the slate.
“The back line was really strong [against South Carolina], and it was one of the best games they’ve played,” Clarke said. “There were a lot of balls kicked in back there, and they kept heading them out. South Carolina never really played balls through our defense. Our back line was really solid.”
The back line’s progression will be key in shutting down an Alabama attack that has poured in 29 goals this season, a mark that ranks second in the conference. But Lee said he doesn’t believe much separates the two squads.
“Teams five through 12 in the SEC are relatively equal in strength,” Lee said. “Alabama is in that mix with all of us, and we’ll see who emerges.”
You can reach David Gray on Twitter @dgray_TDR.