No. 25 LSU Soccer Set for SEC Championship Against No. 8 Vanderbilt on Sunday
PENSACOLA, Fla. – The No. 25 nationally ranked LSU Soccer team (13-5-3) will compete for the 2025 SEC Tournament Championship on Sunday, November 9 at 1:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network, taking on No. 8 Vanderbilt at the Ashton Brosnaham Soccer Complex.
The championship match between the Tigers and the Commodores is set for 1:30 p.m. CT and will air live on SEC Network with Mike Watts and Jill Loyden on the call.
The Tigers are back on the conference’s biggest stage for the first time since 2018, when they claimed the program’s lone SEC title with a penalty shootout victory over Arkansas. This year marks the third championship appearance in program history (2009, 2018, 2025) for LSU, and first under Head Coach Sian Hudson in her sixth season at the helm.
LSU has battled its way through the SEC Tournament field since beginning tournament play last Sunday in Pensacola, collecting wins over Auburn (3-2) on Nov. 2, No. 14 Tennessee (2-0) on Nov. 4, and Mississippi State (3-1) on Nov. 6 to reach the final. As the No. 5 seed, LSU became the lowest-seeded team to reach the final since Vanderbilt in 2020, when the Commodores went on to win the championship.
The Tigers enter the title match riding a program-record 10-match unbeaten streak, going 8-0-2 since September 21, and have displayed a balanced, high-energy attack led by forwards Ava Galligan, Ida Hermannsdottir, and Sariyah Bailey — all of whom found the scoresheet in Thursday’s semifinal victory over Mississippi State. Galligan, who tallied her 10th goal of the season, became the first LSU player since 2016 to reach double digits in goals in a single season. Hermannsdottir’s eighth goal of the year tied her career-high in a single season set in 2024, while Bailey’s header marked her seventh of her freshman campaign.
Graduate student Morgan Witz is another piece of the LSU attack who has been crucial for the squad in Pensacola, scoring two goals in the Tigers first two matches to help lead her team to the finals. LSU leads the tournament with most goals scored (8) in three games, while Galligan, Hermannsdottir and Witz have the most goals by a single player in the tournament this year with two each.
LSU also leads the tournament in assists (9) as Bailey leads the way with two herself at the beach.
Defensively, LSU has been equally resilient, anchored by the backline of captains Jazmin Ferguson and Kelsey Major and seniors Sydney Cheesman and Jocelyn Ollivierre, who have conceded just three goals through three tournament matches. The Tigers’ collective composure and structure have been key throughout the tournament, even earning a clean sheet in the quarterfinals against Tennessee.
Ferguson leads the squad in minutes this year and has played every minute of every match in Pensacola thus far.
Sunday’s opponent, Vanderbilt, advanced to the final after defeating Georgia, 2-0, in Thursday’s semifinal. The Commodores are ranked No. 8 nationally with a record of 15-3-1 and earned a bye into the tournament as the two-seed. They defeated Alabama in the quarterfinals in their first match at the beach on Tuesday prior to their win over Georgia.
The Commodores are seeking their fourth SEC Tournament title in program history (1993, 1994, 2020). LSU and Vanderbilt last met on September 12 in Nashville, a tightly contested 0-0 draw that showcased the intensity expected in Sunday’s rematch.
A win would give LSU its second SEC Championship in school history, capping off a remarkable run at the beach and furthering host hopes for NCAA Tournament action in Baton Rouge next weekend.
Season Stats
LSU has gained momentum at the right time just ahead of the NCAA postseason, securing three tournament wins, earning a spot in the national rankings and bumping their RPI to 16, the third highest in the SEC currently. Vanderbilt sits at four while Tennessee has an RPI of nine.
LSU was one of eight SEC teams who ranked in the Top 40 of the Oct. 27 RPI rankings entering tournament action.
The Tigers concluded the regular season on October 26 with a win over Florida, securing a fifth place finish in the SEC, their highest under Sian Hudson. The Tigers finished the regular season with a 10-5-3 overall record, a 5-2-3 mark in SEC play and a home record of 6-1-1 in 2025.
LSU entered the tournament amongst the top-10 teams in conference play this year, finishing the regular season ranked second in goals (20), second in points (57), third in assists (17), fifth in saves (38) and sixth in shots (125).
Now, LSU has seen 13 different goal scorers across a total of 45 goals scored this season, with Galligan (10), Hermannsdottir (8), Bailey (7) and Witz (5) leading the way. This year’s squad scored their most goals in SEC play since 2011 this year with 20.
Other goal scorers on the year for LSU include Jazmin Ferguson, Gabbi Ceballos, Amy Smith and Gadea Blanco Gonzalez all with two each, while Sydney Cheesman, Kelsey Major, Senai Rogers, Ryann Denecour and Daniela Hellin have tallied one for the Tigers.
Sophine Kevorkian and Audi Scheving have split time as keeper for LSU this year, both finding their own success in between the posts. Kevorkian has appeared in 12 matches for the Tigers this year, tallying a 1.20 goals-against average (GAAVG), 38 saves and three shutouts.
Scheving started in the squad’s last two matches against Tennessee and Mississippi State in the tournament, adding five more saves to her resume this year. She owns 28 saves this season with three clean sheets and a GAAVG of 0.86.
Ferguson, Hermannsdottir, Ollivierre and Major are the only Tigers to earn the start in all 21 matches for LSU thus far.
Tigers in the Rankings
The LSU Soccer program returned to the national rankings for the first time in four seasons this week. The Tigers entered the polls ranked No. 23 by Top Drawer Soccer and No. 25 by United Soccer Coaches on Tuesday, marking their first appearance in the national rankings since September 2021.
The ranking marks LSU’s first appearance in the TopDrawerSoccer poll since 2018 and its first United Soccer Coaches top-25 ranking since 2021. The last time LSU appeared in the national polls, they were ranked No. 18 by Top Drawer Soccer and No. 24 by United Soccer Coaches.
The recognition came after the team’s SEC Tournament win over Auburn on November 2.
Throughout the 2025 season, the Tigers have earned multiple results against nationally respected opponents and have positioned themselves amongst the top of the SEC under Hudson’s leadership.
The Tigers will look to build on their momentum and make a statement in the national tournament.
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