Following a nail-biting loss in the SEC Championship Finals, the LSU soccer team turned around for the first round of the NCAA Tournament on its home pitch in Baton Rouge.
In a battle against the underdog Houston Christian Huskies, the Tigers seemed to reharvest their SEC momentum to take the 4-1 win over HCU.
Freshman Sariyah Bailey led the Tigers with two goals. These two goals bring her to nine total on the season, bringing her already successful freshman campaign to the next level.
“This team is absolutely amazing across all lines,” Bailey said. “We’re gonna prove everyone wrong and we are going to win this because we get a second chance.”
A home team that dictated the match with relentless pressure and attacking play, LSU showed controlled possession with chance after chance, never letting the visitors settle. By the final whistle, that dominance was clearly reflected.
As the first half took off, the Tiger offense quickly became the star of the show. With increased patience behind the ball, LSU was quick to take chances on HCU’s goalkeeper Emmy McKeon, having a shot on goal just one minute into the game.
With such momentum, the Tigers were presented with multiple scoring opportunities but failed to capitalize on any of them early on, as offside calls pestered the home team through the first 15 minutes of play.
The first real scoring chance came from a scramble inside the Husky box. The Tigers managed to keep the ball in, and a tap by senior Ida Hermannsdottir had sent it over the line and to the back of the net. The celebrations were short lived, however, as an offsides had invalidated the goal.
As LSU continued the search to be first on the scoreline, the Husky defense put up a fight. McKeon, a sophomore out of Kaysville, Utah, collected six saves on the night to finish with a season total of 90.
Even against McKeon’s 0.832% save percentage, the Baton Rouge team had managed to crack the defense that held up thus far.
Freshman Sariyah Bailey took a shot parallel to the goal and sent the ball across through to the bottom right corner of the Huskies’ net. Bailey has been an obvious presence for the Tigers, and after tonight, totals nine goals on the season.
While continuing to look for more offensive production before the end of the half, the Tigers worked to maintain ball possession in Husky territory. Even so, HCU put up a fight to hold the Tigers to a one goal lead as the first buzzer sounded.
Holding an 8-0-1 record when leading at the start of the second half, the Tigers returned to the field looking for another win to add to that record.
LSU brought back most of the key players from the night’s starting eleven for the second half, though they made a switch in goal with Scheving being replaced Sophine Kevorkian. Scheving, who earned one save on one shot in the Tigres’ box, has totaled 34 saves on the season, with 11 saves in postseason play alone.
Junior Ava Galligan, who leads the team in goals scored this season, did not return for the second half. Senior Sydney Cheesman also did not see a second half start.
The few changes on the field didn’t seem to falter the Tigers as they picked up the second half right where they left off with continued offensive momentum.
“It doesn’t matter what 11 players are on the field for us, they’re going to empty the tank.” said head coach Sian Hudson.
Just five minutes into the half, a scuffle in front of the Huskies’ net saw a stumble from Hermannsdottir, but a quick ball recovery by midfielder Gabbi Ceballos gave leeway for a left foot shot to make it past McKeon, putting LSU up to a 2-0 lead.
The Tigers slightly shifted toward defensive play against a pressing HCU offense, but they still held the majority of ball possession.
It wasn’t until the 67th minute that the Huskies had finally broken through the superstar Tiger backline when a steal by HCU’s Ella Remy allowed for a shot to be sent directly into the net, cutting LSU’s lead in half.
Looking to extend their lead once more, the Tigers pushed to reignite the attacking energy they opened the match with.
It didn’t take LSU long to find it. With traffic crowding the Husky net, a shot by Bailey slipped through and into the back of the net, marking her second of the match. Just 17 seconds later, Ava Amsden found Hermannsdottir, whose left-footed strike went just out of McKeon’s reach and pushed the Tigers’ lead to 4-1.
Outshooting the Huskies 29-3, it was clear that the Tiger offense had controlled the game. Now totaling 50 goals on the season, 13 of which have come from the postseason alone, LSU will next face Iowa on Thursday, Nov. 20 in hopes of advancing to the quarterfinals.
