There are measuring stick games, and then there is No. 1 North Carolina.The Tar Heels (6-0) have won 19 national championships in soccer, their most recent coming last fall, and have started this season with comfortable wins against three different top-10 teams.The Heels will be LSU’s opening opponent today at 4 p.m. in this year’s Duke Nike Classic in Durham, N.C., and could be the toughest test ever for the LSU soccer team, as the Tigers (4-1-1) have never faced a No. 1 team, let alone on the road.”It’s a great chance to test ourselves against the best team in the country as we head toward [Southeastern Conference] play,” said LSU coach Brian Lee.The Tigers are riding a three-game win streak heading into the weekend, as they beat South Florida on Sept. 6 before dispatching Oklahoma and Louisiana-Lafayette last weekend in a pair of 4-0 shutouts.”I certainly feel like we’ve gotten better week-to-week,” Lee said. “The result is always important, but what we’re really looking for is how does the flow of the game go and how do we compete for 90 minutes.”North Carolina’s last performance before facing LSU was a 2-0 win against No. 13 Texas A&M. The Tar Heels have also downed No. 4 UCLA, 7-2, and No. 12 Notre Dame, 6-0, this season.”The No. 1 thing about Carolina is how hard they tackle,” Lee said. “Their effort level for 90 minutes is as good as it gets — not just at college soccer but anywhere in the world.”The challenge doesn’t end with North Carolina, as LSU faces host team Duke (4-3) on Sunday afternoon. The Blue Devils started the season ranked No. 14 but fell out of the rankings after a loss to Florida last week.The Duke Nike Classic will round out what has been a tough non-conference schedule for LSU. The Tigers open SEC play with Georgia next week, but this weekend’s games have been circled on the Tigers’ calendar for some time.”It’s really exciting because all the other seasons we’ve never really had these huge games,” said sophomore midfielder Taryne Boudreau. “These two teams have always made it to the NCAAs and Final Fours. It’s going to be real tough for our team, and we’ll see where we’re at right now.”The Tigers will need contributions from their senior-heavy attack if they are to keep pace this weekend. Senior midfielder Malorie Rutledge followed through on her All-American expectations last week with an assist against Oklahoma and two goals against ULL.Senior midfielder Melissa Clarke continues to hum along as well, scoring two goals and an assist in the rout of the Sooners. She has five goals through six games after scoring just six goals in all of 2008, placing her in a five-way tie for first in goals scored in the SEC.”I’m so blessed and so thankful,” Clarke said. “I’m really excited about the weekend. That’s going to be a big one.”Lee held Clarke out of practice Wednesday with a tweaked hamstring but said she should be available this afternoon when the Tigers and Tar Heels kick off.- – – – Contact David Helman at [email protected]