TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The LSU soccer team dropped a heartbreaking decision Friday evening, falling to Alabama 1-0 in Tuscaloosa in a tightly contested battle.
The Tigers (4-10-1 overall, 2-4 in SEC play) were mired in a scoreless match with the Tide (6-7, 3-3) into the 65th minute when Missy Kelly knocked a five-yard shot past LSU goalkeeper Bryna Warnock.
“Our team played really hard tonight, I’m extremely proud of them,” said LSU head coach Greg Boggs. “The effort was there, the result was not tonight. If we get this kind of effort Sunday against Auburn then we will do very well.”
In a match similar to their battle of a year ago, also won by Alabama, the two teams traded opportunities over the opening 45 minutes with Alabama getting the best scoring chance of the first half. The Tide was awarded a penalty kick in the 10th minute of play following a trip in the penalty box, but the usually reliable Tiffany Carle knocked the ball off the right post and out of bounds and the game remained scoreless.
The two traded scoring chances, but neither would be able to break into the scoring column in the first half.
In the second half of play Alabama began to mount consistent pressure on the Tiger goal. Warnock kept the Tigers in the match with 12 saves on the night before Michelle Evans headed the ball to Kelly who was able to finish the only goal of the match.
The Tigers had a pair of strong scoring chances in the final six minutes of play, but were held scoreless for the second consecutive match. LSU dropped to 0-5 all-time against Alabama with the loss.
The Tigers will attempt to rebound on Sunday afternoon when they take on Auburn at 1 p.m.