The LSU Soccer team couldn’t pick up its third straight victory but remains unbeaten on the season after tying Ball State. 1-1, Friday night at the LSU Soccer Stadium.
LSU (3-0-2, 0-0 SEC) came in with some momentum after defeating Western Kentucky and Minnesota in back-to-back games during the Battle on the Bayou tournament last weekend in Baton Rouge. However, the Tigers were unable to pull away from the Cardinals (3-1-1, 0-0 Midland Conference) after two overtime periods and 110 minutes of soccer in total.
LSU Coach Brian Lee said he thought his team may have taken Ball State lightly.
“Sometimes you can get fooled by names.” Lee said. “We would’ve liked to grind out the win, but we knew it can be an ugly game. I thought our first goal would stand out, but we lost a runner and gave them an open header. It’s good that we’re still unbeaten, and we still have a good mindset that will make us tough to beat.”
The first half was a physical 45 minutes that saw each team getting off just three shots and committing four fouls apiece.
Senior midfielder Natalia Gomez-Junco was shaken up after a scrum with seventeen minutes remaining in the first half and had to leave the game. However, she returned in less than two minutes and almost immediately helped put the Tigers on the board first.
Gomez-Junco launched a free kick from near midfield right onto the head of sophomore forward Jorian Baucom, who was inside the penalty box. Baucom flicked her head with her back to the goal and buried her team-leading fourth goal of the season just inside the right post.
LSU took a 1-0 lead into the locker room at halftime, but Ball State would respond, scoring the equalizer five minutes into the second half.
Senior forward Elaina Musleh tied things up for the Cardinals with 40 minutes remaining in the second half with a header off of a corner kick. Junior defender Leah Mattingly got the assist on the play.
The physicality from the first half continued throughout the game. Baucom received a yellow card for LSU in the second half, and Ball State coach Craig Roberts received a yellow card with seven minutes remaining in regulation after arguing with one of the officials.
Baucom said the games will only get more physical as the season goes on and LSU enters Southeastern Conference play.
“That’s the game of soccer,” Baucom said. “Come SEC play, it will be even more physical. Ball state was aggressive. They have a good team, and luckily we were able to match up just as well.”
Baucom got behind the last Cardinal defender and had a one on one opportunity with the goalkeeper that could’ve won the game before it went to overtime, but she launched it high and wide of the net with two minutes remaining in regulation. Neither team seriously threatened to score in either of the overtime periods.
The Tigers’ next game will be against Indiana at 1 p.m. Sunday afternoon at the LSU Soccer Stadium.