BATON ROUGE — With the start of the 2008 soccer season just two weeks away, LSU head coach Brian Lee put his squad through its first two-a-day practice of fall camp Wednesday with a pair of training sessions at 7 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. at the LSU Soccer Complex.
The Tigers have 16 more training sessions scheduled in the next two weeks and four more two-a-day practices as they prepare for their season opener against South Alabama on Aug. 22.
The squad kicked off its morning practice with a fitness run at the Bernie Moore Track Stadium followed by a technical-based training session at the LSU Soccer Complex. The team warmed up in the afternoon before taking part in a series of six-on-six scrimmages.
“This has been a day we’ve all circled on our calendars since the end of last season,” Lee said. “It’s now time for us to get back to work and build on the success we enjoyed a year ago and start accomplishing the goals we’ve set forth for this season. I’m very encouraged by what I’ve seen in this group of girls after our first two-a-day practice out at the field.
“I think the most important thing is that our girls have come back in great shape. That’s a big step toward having a productive fall camp in preparation for our season opener. It also shows us as a coaching staff that they’ve demonstrated a continued commitment to fitness in the offseason.”
Unlike the previous two seasons, the Tigers will compete this fall with a wealth of experience as nine starters and 14 letterwinners return from a team that won the SEC West crown and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament a year ago.
Among that number are 14 upperclassmen that are ready to take the next step and challenge for the first Southeastern Conference championship in program history.
“We took a big first step today toward our goal of competing for an SEC championship,” said senior Roslyn Jones, who is one of five Tigers returning to the club after starting all 24 matches a year ago. “We have a lot more experience this year than we have at any other point in my career, and the girls just seem to have a better understanding of what it takes to compete at this level after what we accomplished last season. We came out and had two great practices today.”
The Tigers are preparing for their season opener on Aug. 22 as they welcome the South Alabama Jaguars to the LSU Soccer Complex in a match scheduled for 7 p.m. Fans can reserve their season tickets for each of LSU’s 11 home games by logging on to www.LSUsports.net or calling the LSU ticket office at 225-578-2184.