LSU soccer coach Brian Lee stressed the importance of creating more efficient scoring opportunities to his squad in preparation for Friday’s match against Northwestern State.
The message was well received.
After scoring two goals on 20 shots in the season opener against Troy Aug. 22, the Tigers (2-0) found the net six times on 16 shots and defeated the visiting Lady Demons squad 6-2 on Friday at LSU Soccer Stadium.
The Tigers’ six goals were the most in a game since a 6-0 victory over Louisiana-Monroe on Aug. 27, 2013.
“One of the keys from the first game to the second game was to create better chances,” Lee said. “[We wanted] to make one more pass rather than just launching the first ball the first time we’re free, so that was a big part of that tonight that just took some coaching.”
Four different Tigers found the net against Northwestern State (1-2), and both sophomore Summer Clarke and junior Lexi Gibbs chipped in two apiece.
Perhaps one of the key reasons behind LSU’s offensive onslaught was Lee’s decision to insert three forwards into the starting lineup rather than two.
In the Tigers’ season opener against Troy, Clarke and freshman striker Jorian Baucom were the squad’s only forwards in the starting lineup.
But against the Lady Demons, Lee teamed Clarke with juniors Natalia Gomez-Junco and Fernanda Pina.
The three appeared to be in total sync from the start.
“[Gomez-Junco and Pina] can both score goals, so it was good to know there were other people I could work with to find more goals,” Clarke said.
Gomez-Junco was the first of the trio to get on the board when she curved a free kick over the outstretched arms of Northwestern freshman goalkeeper Alex Latham in the game’s opening minutes. It was the second goal of the season for the Memphis transfer.
Clarke didn’t wait long to join her teammate on the scoreboard.
Off a centering pass from Pina, Clarke snuck the ball past Latham for the first score of her sophomore campaign to give LSU an early 2-0 lead. Clarke, who led the Tigers last season with 10 scores, would later add another goal in the second half off an assist from sophomore midfielder Emma Fletcher.
Despite the victory, the Tigers’ roster took a major hit when senior midfielder Alex Arlitt, who also alternates as a defender, suffered an apparent foot injury before the end of the first half. It’s unclear whether she’ll be ready for LSU’s match against Rice on Sunday.
Arlitt’s injury forced Lee to tap deep into his young roster. At one point during the game, three true freshmen were on the Tigers’ back line, which led to some communication miscues.
But Lee said he wasn’t discouraged by the back line’s performance because it’s still too early in the season to draw any conclusions yet.
“Alex is a big leader on our team, so we were all taken a little bit aback by her injury,” Lee said. “But even with Alex, we are still working out kinks. Our chemistry and communication isn’t quite where it needs to be, but we’re playing a young back line and it’s the second game of the season. So we have to be realistic about it as well.”
The Tigers will continue their four-game home stand when they host Rice at 6 p.m. on Sunday.