The LSU Soccer team capped its Southeastern Conference opening weekend with a 1-1 draw against Alabama on Sunday afternoon in LSU Soccer Stadium.
“I thought today was one of our lesser performances of the year,” said LSU coach Brian Lee. “We’re still at a point where we’re trying to get better.”
With another physical match, the Tigers played their fourth double-overtime game of the season, and came to their third draw.
“Draws are generally a good sign; it means you got fighters,” Lee said. “…Overtime comes down to how hard you’re willing to fight. Overtime’s tough.”
Alabama (5-2-1) controlled the ball throughout the game and outshot LSU (4-2-3) 27-9.
After the Tigers struggled offensively in the first half, senior forward Carlie Banks scored off of a volley from the top of the box right before the end of half in the 44th minute.
“[The goal] brought confidence back after losing to A&M,” Banks said. “But we gotta keep that composure going forward.”
The Tide netted an equalizer early in the second half from forward Pia Rijsdijk with an assist from midfielder Theresa Diederich in the 51st minute.
While Alabama controlled the ball during the second half, both teams had many close opportunities to score, but neither could capitalize.
LSU’s best chances to score in the overtime periods came from rebound opportunities, but the Tigers could not convert.
“We just gotta finish the little ones we get especially late in the game,” Banks said. “We gotta be sharp on those.”
Alabama nearly scored off a header by Rijsdijk initiated by a goal kick in the 66th minute, but the header was too strong and sailed over the goal.
“I think we were tired, we were fatigued from Friday night,” Lee said. “Friday night was a big game— we didn’t rotate a lot of players.”
The Tigers faced Alabama just 42 hours after losing 1-0 to No. 10 Texas A&M.
The Aggies scored in the 13th minute with a header from junior Rachel Lenz off of a Texas A&M corner kick. A&M dominated the game, taking 19 shots compared to the Tigers’ nine.
LSU’s closest chance to score came from an Addie Eggleston drive in the first half that ended in a wide-right shot from eight yards out.
The Aggies didn’t allow many second-chance opportunities for the Tigers, which have been a source of goals this season for LSU.
“There’s definitely things we need to clean up,” Banks said. “It’s just the start of the SEC. It’s going to be a tough road ahead of us. We just need to step it up.”
