The LSU soccer team earned its third Southeastern Conference runner-up finish in four seasons by breezing past Arkansas with a late offensive barrage in a 3-0 victory Friday at Razorback Field.
Senior midfielder Taryne Boudreau continued her prodigious scoring with a penalty-kick score in the 51st minute for her 12th goal of the season.
Junior forward Carlie Banks earned the penalty after being taken down on her run through the penalty box, and Boudreau capitalized with a low liner past Arkansas keeper Emily Lilliard on LSU’s first penalty kick of the season.
Boudreau then facilitated LSU’s (13-6-1, 8-3 SEC) second score in the 67th minute, flicking the ball past a porous Razorback defense to sophomore midfielder Addie Eggleston, who buried the shot from six yards out.
The senior’s three-point night put her past the 30-point mark for the season. Boudreau’s nine goals and 22 points in conference play are both tied for league highs.
Freshman Kaley Blades capped off the scoring binge, earning LSU’s third goal and the third of her redshirt freshman campaign with an eight-yard strike in the 83rd minute.
The Tigers’ second-half prowess was only accentuated by its inability to finish its multitude of quality scoring chances in the first half.
LSU controlled the action and possession for the first 45 minutes, doubling Arkansas’ shots-on-goal and tallying 11 shots but failing to find the net.
“We talked a lot at halftime about being more clinical in the final third in giving ourselves a better chance to score goals,” said LSU coach Brian Lee in a news release. “We talked about the importance of making the final pass and not settling for the shots we were taking in the first half. We did that very well in the second half.”
But the brightest spot in the second half may have been the Tigers’ defense, as a stingy back line didn’t allow even a shot on goal in the match’s final stanza.
Since giving up four goals in a 4-1 home loss to South Carolina on Oct. 20, LSU has responded by pitching consecutive shutouts against Florida and Arkansas to close out the regular season.
The shutout was senior goalkeeper Mo Isom’s eighth clean sheet in 18 starts this fall, and she now has 30 overall during her four seasons in goal.
While LSU got the win, it ultimately ended up missing out on the main prize — a share of the SEC title.
The Gamecocks broke the Gators’ five-year stranglehold on the conference crown with a 2-1 win at Florida on Friday night that also prevented LSU from earning a piece of the overall title.
“A few other things didn’t fall our way, but I’m so proud of this team,” Isom said after the match.
With the regular season in the books, the Tigers now turn their attention to the annual SEC Tournament in Orange Beach, Ala.
LSU will be the No. 2 seed and face SEC West runner-up and seventh-seeded Auburn in the opening match of the eight-team tournament.
“We’re excited to compete as part of the strongest field in history of the SEC Tournament,” Lee said. “We think that all eight teams competing in Orange Beach next week are in position to pick up an NCAA Tournament bid a week later.”
The Tigers are just 6-5 away from the LSU Soccer Stadium this season, including a blowout 3-1 loss at Auburn on Oct. 13.
LSU rebounded from that loss to capture its fourth SEC West championship in five seasons with an eight-point advantage in the final divisional standings.
 
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Contact Chris Abshire at [email protected]