LSU defeated Kentucky 3-2 in another nail-biter on the pitch Saturday afternoon at LSU Soccer Stadium.
“It felt good to get another win,” Head Coach Sian Hudson said. “Getting three wins at this point in the SEC is creating a lot of confidence in the team. The team had a great response to going down early and finishing the game strong. We talked a lot this week about a response to Mississippi State loss and who we are as a team and today we proved that.”
The Tigers got off to a rough start as Kentucky’s Jordyn Rhodes scored the first goal of the game off a corner kick. It did not take long for LSU to respond, however, as the Tigers scored only two minutes later, when co-captain Shannon Cooke nailed a penalty kick into the bottom left-hand corner past Kentucky’s goalkeeper Tallulah Miller. Forward Sage Glover scored later in the 34th minute to give LSU a 2-1 lead going into the half.
The go-ahead goal came in the 58th minute for the Tigers. Defender Lindsi Jennings cleared the ball up to the middle of the pitch. A Kentucky defender could not properly connect on her header and the ball went past her and into the Wildcats’ side of the field.
Forward Mollie Baker recovered the loose ball and dribbled it into the box, shooting it past Kentucky’s keeper to score a breakaway goal. The goal gave LSU a 3-2 lead and ultimately the win. Baker’s goal was her fourth of the year and the first in SEC play.
LSU goalkeeper Mollee Swift was also critical down the stretch as well. Swift made saves with poise and calmness in the 60th and 89th minutes, keeping the score line at 3-2. Swift finished the match with four saves.
LSU outshot the Wildcats 13-8, with both teams finishing with six shots on targets. LSU won the battle of possession, with Tigers holding the ball 56% of the time compared to Kentucky, who had the ball 44% of the time.
The Tigers will hit the road next to take on the Texas A&M Aggies in College Station, Texas at 6 p.m. CT on Thursday, October 6, on SEC Network.