It is football season so why not a column about football.
But I’m writing today about the world’s game of fútbol – or as we know it in the United States, soccer.
It was not hard to be impressed with Monday night’s match that the LSU women’s soccer team played against Memphis. Those in attendance or watching on TV saw two very young teams with just enough veterans with experience that can lead and direct their teams.
But in LSU’s 2-1 win over Memphis, a team that has won the last five C-USA Tournament championships, and in other matches this year it has been easy to see the type of team LSU is going to be the rest of this year and in years to come with the addition of a group of players who have the potential of big stars, including a U-20 World Cup player from Canada and a playmaker from Mexico who can make the soccer ball sing.
More importantly in Monday’s win, I think I may have seen, the absolute best half and if not the best game, certainly one of the best 90 minutes of net minding for LSU in the program’s short history.
Megan Kinneman stopped a career high 10 shots on goal and Memphis had nearly another 10 that were just counted as shots, including two that hit posts from point-blank range. The 10 stops came on long and short shots, and a rare stop on a penalty kick, something that adds bonus points to the evening’s success.
It took an amazing crossing goal that bent in from near the left goal line for Kinneman to lose the shutout, but that’s nothing to since at because very few college keepers could have stopped it.
But back to the penalty kick. Memphis spent much of the first half in the LSU third and could have easily tied the game at 1-1 when a foul in the penalty box gave Memphis the kick and what stats would show is a fairly easy shot one-on-one against the goal keeper.
Well, in this Kinneman had some help as she told us on TV after the match, saluting her assistant coach, Kevin Dempsey, who had the scouting assignment for Memphis. There was a penalty kick in a previous match and when the same girl went to take it, Kinneman remembered what the coach had told her that she went to her right with the kick. The Memphis girl kicked it right, Kinneman went that same way and had a great save that kept Memphis off the board.
Memphis scores three goal minimum in that match on Monday with Kinneman, who is showing the talents she showed in 2010 when she was Freshman All-SEC and filled in quite a bit that year. But in 2012, the net is all hers and she is protecting it for all she is worth. She directs traffic, gets her defensive players where she needs them and takes charge of the area around her net like a true leader does.
Friday night, she’ll be right back in her spot when LSU opens conference play at 7 p.m. at the Soccer Stadium against new member Texas A&M. It will be Student Point Night and several other promotions are taking place. Friday nights at the soccer complex are special and it can get to be a heck of a home pitch advantage. If you are in town for the Saturday football why not stop in and give the world’s game of football a watch as well.
Here’s the best thing — admission is free.
Oh and by the way. This LSU soccer team doesn’t just have a goal keeper. They do have scorers. I think it is eight players have scored at least one goal this season. Jade Kovacevic is the Canadian U-20 freshman who is continuing the LSU run of outstanding players from the North and Mexican freshman Fernanda Pina can dribble the ball left and right and through defenders in the blink of an eye. There are Magee and Maffei and so many more. With senior leadership like Blades, Banks and Ieyoub, why can’t this year’s team compete for a strong SEC finish that will take them to the NCAA Tournament?
Best of all, if they do get back to the NCAAs, they know they won’t have to go to or face A&M in the opening round.
LSU’s first four SEC contests are at home. Brian Lee was coaching hard Monday night directing his troops to a win. Now time for the best part of the season – SEC play. Hope to see you Friday at the match. Until next time, Geaux Tigers!