LSU soccer has completed a successful two weeks of SEC play but has many threats ahead on the road to Pensacola.
In week one, 16 teams battled it out all over the South. A lot was learned in 22 matches, including which teams have the strongest chance of finishing at the top. Currently, LSU is second in the SEC and unranked in the NCAA Top 25.
Next week, LSU will be challenged by ranked opponents, No. 8 Auburn and No. 9 Mississippi State, and will face some of the best players in the country this season.
As SEC play continues, here are three teams that will give LSU soccer their biggest challenges.
Mississippi State
First up, Mississippi State: third in the SEC and No. 9 in the NCAA Top 25.
So far this season, the Bulldogs have only allowed two goals compared to their 18 goals scored. Like LSU, 12 players have contributed to that total, and midfielder Ally Perry leads the team with four goals.
Mississippi State is on a five-game win streak after a 2-1 loss to Wake Forest in pre-conference play.
In their SEC opener, Mississippi State won 2-0 against Oklahoma, similar to LSU’s 3-1 win against the Sooners.
Mississippi State’s Maddy Anderson, Texas native and grad student, is the No. 2 ranked goalkeeper in the NCAA.
With eight clean sheets to her name this season, she will be LSU’s toughest opponent between the posts.
Anderson has the second most shutouts in the SEC with seven in nine matches, and first in shutouts-per-game with an average of 0.78. Additionally, no one can even come close to her save percentage of 91.7%.
The Tigers will travel to Starkville to play Mississippi State on Sunday, Sept. 29 where there may be plenty of room for an upset against one of the top teams in the nation.
Auburn
Speaking of top teams in the nation, Auburn is sixth in the SEC and ranked No. 8 in the NCAA Top 25, but took a disastrous loss to unranked Texas A&M on Thursday.
The team tied Vanderbilt 2-2 in their opener and snuck away with a 1-0 win over Florida, but lost on their own turf to the Aggies. The final score was 4-1.
They will face Ole Miss next, whom LSU beat 1-0.
Auburn is second in goals within the SEC with 34 and averages 3.09 goals a game. The team shutout all nine of their pre-conference opponents.
Olivia Woodson, Anna Haddock and Shelby Sallee are all names to watch out for. The three have a combined total of 14 goals, 13 assists, 61 shots and 7 game-winners. The offensive trio puts their competition under constant attack, and there is no doubt they will try to push LSU’s defense to the limit.
The match will take place on Friday, Oct. 4, after the Mississippi State game on Sunday. Auburn will be looking for redemption, but LSU will be doing everything they can to make it a double upset for the rival tigers.
Texas A&M
Making lots of noise in the SEC, Texas A&M has risen to fifth in the SEC and remains unranked in the NCAA Top 25.
The Aggies opened SEC play with a 1-0 win over Missouri but lost 2-1 to Oklahoma in their second match.
In a numbers game, this should mean that LSU would have the upper hand in a matchup since it defeated Oklahoma 3-1. But in a complete turn-around, Texas A&M dominated its match against the top 10 ranked Auburn, leading every minute and finding the net four times before the final whistle.
A&M scored an average of two goals a game and owns six shutouts thus far.
Sydney Becerra was responsible for the opening and closing goals of the Auburn match, which added to her previous three goals.
A controller of the midfield, she plays a big role in a majority of the team’s successes. Almost half of her shot attempts land on goal, and over a third of those shots make it into the net.
LSU and A&M will not face off until later in conference play on Oct. 18, and this first week showed a lot can happen in a short amount of time.
There is still plenty of soccer left this season, but as conference play continues and the competition gets tighter, LSU will have no room for errors against these teams.
