BATON ROUGE — The LSU soccer team will host the Nicholls State Colonels on Sunday in its third-consecutive in-state battle at 2 p.m. at the LSU Soccer Complex.
“I think that it’s good for us to play a lot of the competition from around the state,” said LSU head coach George Fotopoulos. “As a whole, the Louisiana schools are steadily improving and they provide us with some good competition. Nicholls State is a dangerous team and we just need to stay consistent in order to pick up a win.”
LSU enters Sunday’s non-conference matchup with the momentum of a three-game winning streak and a 4-1 overall record. The Tigers have played dominating soccer at home this season and have outscored their opponents 11-0 at the LSU Soccer Complex. On Friday, LSU defeated Louisiana-Monroe, 4-0, to remain undefeated in 11-straight contests against in-state rivals.
The Colonels head into the game with a 2-1-1 overall record and have not registered a defeat since their first contest of the season. In its season opener, Nicholls State fell to North Texas, 7-1, on the road in Denton, Texas. The Colonels’ two victories came against Northwood University, 4-1, and the University of Mobile, 5-1.
“Nicholls (State) has a solid team,” Fotopoulos said. “They have some talented players on their roster and they are very fundamentally sound. There’s no way that we can just show up and expect to win. We’re going to have to play with the same fire and intensity that we would against an SEC opponent.”
The Tigers and Colonels have faced off three times prior to Sunday’s contest and LSU has been victorious in all three matches. In the most-recent contest, the Tigers earned a 3-0 win at home during the 2001 season. LSU has never allowed a goal against the Colonels and recorded a 6-0 victory in 1999 and a 4-0 win in 2000.
LSU will be led by forward Mandy Heintz in Sunday’s in-state battle. The junior from San Antonio, Texas, has scored eight goals this season including a record-tying, four-goal performance against Loyola (N.O.) on Wednesday. By scoring eight goals in the Tigers’ opening five games, Heintz doubled her career scoring output and equaled LSU’s top goal scorer of last season.
Artie Brown led the Tigers with eight total goals during the 2001 campaign.
“Our offense has been playing really well this season,” said Fotopoulos.
“We’re hitting on all cylinders right now and I think a lot of that has to be attributed to the play of Mandy Heintz. She’s been taking control on the offensive side of the ball and she’s been making some big plays for us. Hopefully, she’ll be able to continue her solid play.”
The LSU soccer team will next be in action on Sunday, Sept. 15, as the Tigers play host to the Nicholls State Lady Colonels at 2 p.m. at the LSU Soccer Complex.
The game is being tabbed as “Coca Cola and Winn Dixie Soccer Mom Sunday” where soccer moms and dads will have a chance to win an SUV. The LSU marketing staff will also give away soccer ball keychains to the first 100 soccer moms in attendance.