BATON ROUGE – The LSU Tigers and Ole Miss Rebels are set to renew the most competitive rivalry in the Southeastern Conference on Sunday afternoon as the sides wrap up the opening weekend of SEC play with a match slated for a 1 p.m. CDT kickoff at the LSU Soccer Stadium.
Fans have the opportunity to “Geaux Free!” to experience Sunday’s SEC West clash as admission to each of LSU’s remaining four home games is free, compliments of The Advocate.
Fans who are unable to attend the match are reminded that live streaming video of the contest is slated for a 12:55 p.m. start for those with a subscription to the Geaux Zone at www.LSUsports.net/live.
Live updates and exclusive coverage of Sunday’s match between the Tigers and Bulldogs is also available by liking LSU Soccer on Facebook and following @LSUSoccer on Twitter. In addition, fans are welcome to join in the live in-game commentary throughout the match as part of LSU Soccer’s Facebook chat.
The Tigers (6-3-1, 1-0 SEC) enter the match riding a six-game unbeaten streak, which includes a decisive 5-1 victory over the Mississippi State Bulldogs in their SEC opener on Friday night with 1,508 supporters on hand to fuel the victory for the ninth-largest home crowd in program history. The win also pushed their unbeaten streak at the LSU Soccer Stadium to six games dating back to the 2010 season.
Senior midfielder Taryne Boudreau and sophomore striker Addie Eggleston led the LSU attack on Friday night as Boudreau scored two goals with one assist and Eggleston added a goal and an assist in the victory over Mississippi State. Boudreau has already matched her single-season career high with her team-leading five goals on the season, while Eggleston is the team leader with four assists for the campaign.
Other goal scorers in LSU’s 5-1 win over the Bulldogs include senior Kellie Murphy with her third of the season and redshirt freshman Kaley Blades with her first of the 2011 campaign.
The Tigers now have an opportunity to sweep the opening weekend of SEC play for the fifth time in team history after winning their SEC opener for the fourth time in the last five seasons.
The Rebels (4-4-1, 0-1) are looking to snap a two-game losing skid on Sunday after dropping their league opener on Friday night with a 2-1 overtime defeat to the Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville. The Rebels also suffered a 4-2 setback against UAB in their non-conference finale on Sept. 17.
Sophomore midfielder Rafaelle Souza is the engine that drives the Ole Miss machine by scoring her team-leading seven goals and five assists on the campaign. She enters Sunday’s match as the SEC’s leader with 19 points on the season, while her seven goals rank No. 2 on the league’s scoring list this fall.
The series between the Tigers and Rebels has been the most competitive in the SEC in recent years as the teams have actually played to four draws in their last six meetings since the 2006 season. The squads have actually played to scoreless draws in each of the last two years in matches played in Baton Rouge in 2009 and Oxford in 2010. It’s a series that also features a pair of 1-1 draws in 2006 and 2007.
LSU is looking for its first victory over Ole Miss since earning a 2-1 decision during the first round of the SEC Tournament during the 2008 postseason. The Tigers are 7-6-4 against the Rebels all-time.
After battling the Rebels on Sunday, the Tigers will wrap up their eight-game homestand next weekend as they welcome a pair of SEC East foes to Baton Rouge. They’ll take on the Tennessee Lady Volunteers on Sept. 30 at 7 p.m. CDT before battling the Georgia Bulldogs on Oct. 2 at 1 p.m.