BATON ROUGE — The LSU soccer team begins the second half of its Southeastern Conference schedule Friday as it travels to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to take on the Alabama Crimson Tide in a match at 7 p.m. at the Alabama Soccer Complex.
LSU (6-5-2, 2-3-1 SEC) is 1-8-1 all-time against Alabama (6-5-2, 0-4-2 SEC) with its lone win being a 2-1 decision in Baton Rouge on Oct. 13, 2000. The Tigers fell to the Crimson Tide last season by the score of 2-1 on Oct. 15.
“Alabama is a very dangerous team for us to play,” said LSU head coach Brian Lee. “They are very physical if you look at the foul charts. They really need a win in the SEC and I expect we will get their best effort with their backs against the wall. Nothing is easy in the SEC, especially playing on the road.”
The Tigers are in position to earn a spot in the SEC Tournament as they are eighth in the conference standings after a split weekend with Eastern Division opponents Georgia and Tennessee. LSU defeated the Bulldogs on Friday, 1-0, thanks to an own goal scored in the 84th minute of play. However, the Lady Volunteers blanked LSU, 2-0, on Sunday in a match where the Tigers could never find an offensive rhythm.
Freshman goalkeeper Jackie Moseley earned her fifth shutout of the season against Georgia and sits in fourth place on the all-time list for shutouts after just her 11th career match in goal. Moseley is currently third in the SEC in that category and ranks fourth with 46 saves, 3.83 saves per match and a save percentage of 82.1 percent.
Moseley and the rest of the Tiger defense will be tested by Alabama, which features the SEC’s leading scorer in senior forward Libby Probst. Probst leads the conference with 13 goals, seven assists and 33 points on the season. Senior forward Kylie Boyd is second on the team and tied for third in the SEC with six goals and tied for seventh with 13 points.
“Libby Probst, all of the other coaches say, is the most dangerous forward in the SEC,” Lee said. “They’ve got some other threats as well. We’ll definitely have to be on our toes defensively and be ready to play on Friday night.”
As a team, the Crimson Tide leads the SEC by averaging three goals, 2.62 assists and 8.62 points per match this season. Lee said that despite not having a win in the SEC, Alabama presents a tough challenge for his team, especially on defense.
After their match with the Crimson Tide, the Tigers travel to take on Auburn at the Auburn Soccer Complex on Sunday at 2 p.m.