BATON ROUGE — The LSU soccer team returns home this weekend for the first time in three weeks as it welcomes arch-rival Auburn to the LSU Soccer Complex on Friday in an SEC Western Division showdown scheduled for 7 p.m.
LSU (7-6-2, 2-2-2 SEC) has not played on its home field since earning a hard-fought 3-2 win over Kentucky on Sept. 24 and is currently tied with Auburn (8-3-2, 2-2-2 SEC) for second place in the Western Division at eight points. The Tigers must win to keep pace with division leader Ole Miss as the Rebels sit atop the SEC West at 12 points.
“We’ve got a lot of respect for Karen Hoppa and her staff and the level of talent that they’ve accumulated over the last three or four years,” said LSU head coach Brian Lee. “They’ve won the SEC West three of the last four years and have had a great season so far. We’re excited to get back home this week for a big game Friday night.
“They had a great non-conference season, and it’s evident of just how strong the conference is top to bottom that a team can beat Texas, run the great results they ran and still six games into our conference schedule be dead even. It’s a great opportunity for our Tigers to get a win that would go a long way toward an NCAA Tournament bid.”
Auburn enters Friday’s match riding a four-game unbeaten streak in SEC play as it has outscored its opponents by a total of 7-0 during the streak, including a 6-0 shutout of Mississippi State on Sunday. The Tigers are the top defensive squad in the SEC with a 0.59 goals against average on the year, outscoring their opponents by the count of 22-8.
Sophomore goalkeeper Allison Whitworth has been named SEC Defensive Player of the Week twice this season as she boasts a 0.63 goals against average with five shutouts on the season. Freshman forward Caitlin King leads the offensive attack for Auburn as she is tied for the team lead with four goals and has recorded three assists for a total of 11 points.
“They have a lot of dynamic attacking players who will have our full attention on Friday night,” Lee said. “The fans can expect to see a lot of up and down action, a lot of goal scoring chances. The winner of this game will no doubt be right in the mix for the SEC West and overall SEC Championship.”
The Tigers are celebrating “National Book Month” on Friday as fans can receive free admission to the game by trading in a book of their own for an LSU Soccer Photo Book. The team follows with a battle against Alabama on Sunday at 1 p.m. in which the first 500 fans will receive free LSU Soccer trading cards courtesy of the LSU Marketing and Promotions Department.