The No. 24 LSU soccer team will look for its fourth consecutive win as they travel to play No. 13 Auburn University at 7 p.m tonight at the Auburn Soccer Complex.
After dropping their Southeastern Conference opener against Alabama, the Tigers (7-1-2, 1-1 SEC) reeled off three wins in a row and climbed back into the national rankings for the first time since 2013.
LSU defeated Marquette University, the University of Georgia and then-No.15 ranked Duke all at the LSU Soccer Stadium to bounce back from its only loss this season. As the Tigers head back on the road, all of their remaining games this season are against opposing SEC foes.
“We feel like we are as prepared as we can be to move forward this season,” said LSU coach Brian Lee in a news release. “We’re looking forward to a great game between two ranked teams that should help shape the way the SEC table looks at the end of the season.”
Auburn (8-1, 1-1 SEC) heads into the game with some momentum of its own, making this game a critical conference matchup for both teams. The home Tigers have been unbeatable at their home stadium this season, posting a 5-0 record at the Auburn Soccer Complex and outscoring opposing teams 11-1.
Auburn has also enjoyed recent success against its Tiger counterparts. Auburn has won the last five games in the series with the last LSU victory coming in 2010.
This game is a tough test for LSU, but the team has battled adversity all season, senior midfielder Natalia Gomez-Junco said. Junco said the Tigers can’t be phased if they go behind early, and it’s important that they battle for 90 minutes, even if things don’t go their way from the start of the game and the Auburn crowd gets riled up.
“We are a team that doesn’t give up easily,” Junco said. “Like on Sunday [against Marquette], if we go down 1-0, our game plan won’t change and we’ll score five goals on you. That’s the mentality the seniors have brought. We know game by game, we can do great things.”
Junco, the SEC’s assist leader, hopes to ride the momentum from her last few games. She was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Week on Monday and was also named to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Women’s National Team of the Week.
Junior forward Summer Clarke and sophomore forward Jorian Baucom enter the game as the NCAA’s leading scoring combination for two forwards. Baucom has scored ten times to lead the SEC and rank second in the NCAA in goals scored, while Clarke has netted seven goals.
The Auburn game will be the front end of a pivotal SEC road trip as LSU travels to play Ole Miss on Sunday night.