BATON ROUGE — Freshman forward Michelle Makasini scored her team-leading 11th goal in the 78th minute and junior goalkeeper Valerie Vogler posted her fourth shutout of the season to lead the LSU soccer team to a 1-0 win over Arkansas on Friday night.
The Tigers (9-8-3, 4-4-3 SEC) have now won three straight games over the Lady Razorbacks (10-6-2, 3-5-2 SEC), but were eliminated from contention for a berth in the SEC Tournament after Kentucky shutout Vanderbilt by the score of 1-0 and Ole Miss earned a 2-0 shutout of Mississippi State on Friday.
“This was a must-win game for us coming in, and I’m proud of the way the girls fought to get a big win in their last regular-season game,” said LSU head coach Brian Lee. “We knew that a few results had to go our way tonight to make it to Orange Beach, and we were just unfortunate that it didn’t happen for us.”
Makasini scored the game’s only goal at the 77:16 mark of the second half after collecting a through ball off the foot of fellow freshman Malorie Rutledge and blasting a shot into the back of the net from 10 yards out past a diving Carrie Dillsaver of Arkansas. Sophomore defender Casey Crawford was also credited with an assist on the goal.
Makasini, who had not scored a goal since her game-winner in LSU’s 1-0 shutout of Mississippi State on Sept. 29, ended her longest goal-scoring drought of the season as she finished the 2006 campaign with 11 goals and tied an LSU freshman record of 29 points previously set by former Tiger Stacy Bishop in 2003.
“What can you say about the way Michelle has played for us all season long,” Lee said. “She’s really a complete attacking player and has an incredible ability to put her teammates in position to score goals just as much as she is able to score them herself. We’re certainly looking forward to watching her development here over the next few years.”
Vogler only needed to save one shot to earn her fourth shutout of the season and sixth of her LSU career, and her first shutout since the Tigers defeated Mississippi State on Sept. 29. The St. Louis, Mo., native also earned a 3-0 shutout against South Alabama on Sept. 15 and a 0-0 tie against Vanderbilt in the Tigers’ SEC opener on Sept. 22.
The Tigers dominated on the offensive end for much of the night as they attempted a total of 13 shots in the match with four shots on goal and four corner kicks, while the Lady Razorbacks were limited in their chances to get on the board as they managed just seven total shots in the game with one shot on goal and one corner kick.
“I felt like we really had control of the game from the opening kickoff and did a great job of keeping possession, passing and moving, and giving ourselves several great chances to score goals,” Lee said. “We finished one of those chances, and that proved to be all we needed. You’ve also got to credit Arkansas for working hard and fighting the way they did for the entire game.”
A pair of Tiger seniors were honored prior to kickoff as forward Joleen Phillips and defender Julie Neumann each made their final career appearance in an LSU uniform. Phillips served as team captain in 2006 and finishes her career with 10 goals and 25 points in 65 games, while Neumann leaves LSU as a four-time letterwinner with 38 career appearances.
The Tigers finish with their first winning season since the 2003 campaign and their most wins in conference play since posting five SEC wins in the 2000 season. Lee said the experience that his young team has gained this season will only lead to greater success for the program in the very near future.
“I’m proud of every one of our players for the way they competed this season and represented this great university on and off the field,” Lee said. “There are a lot of great things for this program to look forward to in the very near future, and there’s no doubt in my mind that we’re well on our way to becoming a perennial contender in this league.”