LAFAYETTE, La. — The LSU soccer team will face in-state rival Louisiana-Lafayette on Friday at 7 p.m. at Cajun Field, looking to continue its impressive streak against in-state schools.
The Tigers (5-1-1) are off to their best start in school history and have not lost to a team from Louisiana since 1999. Head coach George Fotopoulos, who took over in 2000, has complied a 15-0-2 mark against in-state teams with one of the ties coming last Friday when the Tigers played Tulane to a 1-1 draw in New Orleans.
“We saw UL-Lafayette play here in our tournament a few weeks ago but have not played them yet this season, so this match presents a new challenge to our team and I hope we can play our best and ultimately win the game,” said Fotopoulos. “We played a very tough one at Texas last Sunday but have had some time to rest, so I hope we can come out and play the way we are capable and win this one.”
LSU battled No. 11 Texas into overtime last Sunday before falling 4-3, a game in which the Tigers led 3-1 midway through the second half. Seniors Rachel Cohen and Stephanie Keating each recorded an assist against the Longhorns to tie former teammate Ashley Mitnick for first on the all-time assist list with 19.
Forward Stacy Bishop leads the Tigers into the match with the Cajuns. The freshman from Land O’Lakes, Fla., leads the team and the Southeastern Conference in goals scored with 10 and ranks fifth in the nation in goals per game average with 3.14. Bishop scored one of the Tigers’ three goals versus Texas and has also tallied two assists this season.
Junior forward Artie Brown also scored a goal in the match versus the Longhorns and is tied with Ashley Mitnick for fourth in history in goals scored in a career with 20.
The Tigers are 31-4-3 against non-conference competition under Fotopoulos and are outscoring the opposition 30-6 this season.
LSU will stay on the road to face Southeastern Louisiana on Sunday at 2 p.m. in Hammond, La.