ORANGE BEACH, Ala. – The Tigers took their preseason preparation to the next level on Friday night as senior midfielder Natalia Gomez-Junco and junior striker Summer Clarke each scored twice to fire the LSU Soccer team to a decisive 4-0 victory over Southern Miss in their friendly exhibition at the Orange Beach Sportsplex in Orange Beach, Alabama.
The Tigers capped their second week of preseason training in style with Clarke bagging a brace before the break and Gomez-Junco scoring on either side of halftime in Friday’s win over the Golden Eagles.
LSU is now just one week from kicking off its 2015 regular season with a trip to Eugene, Oregon, where it will face the Oregon Ducks on Aug. 21 in a match that is set to kick off at 9 p.m. CT at Pape Field. The match is set to air live on the Pac-12 Network in the network’s very first live event broadcast of the 2015-16 athletic season.
“It’s a great start for our team. Our players can be proud of the way they approached the game tonight, and can draw a lot of positives from the win,” said LSU head coach Brian Lee. “I’m pleased with the work rate we got tonight, our defensive organization at the back and then the way we were able to combine going forward. It’s a great way to continue building for next week.”
The Tigers took an early lead on 13 minutes with a well-worked team goal as Clarke rounded Golden Eagle goalkeeper Brittany Taylor and finished calmly with her right boot from inside the six-yard box. Lexi Gibbs took the initiative with a flicked header from Catalina Rubiano‘s goal kick as she played sophomore striker Jorian Baucom in behind the Southern Miss defense. Baucom then played a one-touch back heel to Clarke clear into space for an easy finish past Taylor to put the Tigers on the board at the 12:51 mark.
Gomez-Junco doubled LSU’s advantage inside of two minutes when she caught the keeper straying from her line and floated her 35-yard chip over Taylor’s outstretched hands and inside the top-left corner of the goal to make it 2-0 with just over 14 minutes played in the first half. Senior midfielder Heather Magee was credited with an assist after laying the ball off to Gomez-Junco for an uncontested strike.
The Tigers only turned up the pressure from there as Clarke struck again in the 20th minute with her second goal of the night with Gibbs again assisting in the buildup. After picking up the ball down their left flank, Gibbs recognized the run of Clarke between Southern Miss’ two central defenders and played her teammate into space in the left side of the penalty area.
LSU’s All-SEC striker then drew Taylor off her line before finishing calmly with the outside of her right boot inside the far post to give the Tigers a commanding 3-0 lead going into the halftime break.
Gomez-Junco put the finishing touches on LSU’s victory just under 10 minutes after the restart when she again scored from distance with a 30-yard strike inside the top-left corner after running onto a square ball from Clarke. The Mexican international matched Clarke with her second goal of the night to give the Tigers a 4-0 win ahead of their regular-season opener at Oregon next week.
Rubiano teamed with sophomore goalkeeper Lily Alfeld for a clean sheet on the night as Rubiano saved the only shot on target surrendered by an organized LSU defense in the game. The Tigers held the Golden Eagles to just eight total shots on the night, while they proved efficient on the other end with 10 of their 15 shots finding the frame.
After opening their regular season at Oregon next week, the Tigers will quickly return home to play host to Northwestern State in their 2015 home opener on the night of Tuesday, Aug. 25, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. CT at the LSU Soccer Stadium in Baton Rouge. Their match against the in-state Demons opens a five-game homestand as the Tigers look to fire out of the blocks with a fast start this fall.