The LSU soccer team will take on Vanderbilt University in an important Southeastern Conference match at 7 p.m. tonight at the LSU Soccer Stadium.
The Commodores (5-5-2, 1-2-1 SEC) tied the University of Tennessee in their last conference match. Their most recent SEC victory came Sept. 11, when they took down Mississippi State University.
Vanderbilt already faced No. 12 University of Florida and No. 16 Texas A&M University, losing both games against two of the top-ranked teams in the SEC, but each match went down to the final whistle. On Sept. 25, the Commodores took an early 2-1 lead against the Gators before conceding two second-half goals in a 3-2 defeat. They also gave the Aggies a run for their money in College Station, Texas, before conceding a 70th-minute game-winning goal.
The Tigers (7-3-2, 1-3 SEC) come into tonight’s match tasked with avoiding their third-straight SEC loss. Last Friday, they went to double overtime with Auburn University before conceding a crushing golden goal in the 102nd minute. On Sunday, LSU traveled to Oxford, Mississippi, to take on the University of Mississippi and suffered its third conference loss of the season.
One of the team’s goals before the season was to never lose back-to-back games. Senior defender Alex Arlitt said the team was disappointed after Sunday’s loss but remains positive.
“It’s disappointing to fall short of that goal,” Arlitt said. “I think we were all pretty down
after the game on Friday, but when we came back and collected our thoughts we looked at the big picture of everything, and we realized it’s not the end of the world. The real test is going to be how we respond to it on Friday and if we can get those three points.”
Sophomore striker Jorian Baucom left Sunday’s match in the 69th minute after she reaggravated an ankle injury that gave her trouble in the team’s nonconference match against Marquette University.
If Baucom isn’t healthy enough to play tonight, the Tigers might look to junior forward Summer Clarke to provide extra offensive firepower. Baucom leads the team with 11 goals, but Clarke has netted seven goals of her own while dishing out four assists this season.
Vanderbilt is led by junior forward Simone Charley and sophomore midfielder Lydia Simmons, both of whom have combined for seven of the team’s 15 goals this season.
LSU coach Brian Lee said the team must take advantage of the remainder of its home games this season, starting tonight.
“We just have to be realistic about it and protect our home turf on Friday night,” Lee said.