Mississippi State
4-9-3, 2-5-2SEC
LSU
10-4-3, 4-4-1SEC
| Team | 1 | 2 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi State | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| LSU | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Soccer Drops Road Match to LSU, 1-0
October 24, 2015 | Soccer
BATON ROUGE, La. – Despite turning in a stellar defensive effort on Friday night, the Mississippi State women's soccer team (4-9-3, 2-5-2 SEC) fell to LSU (10-4-3, 4-4-1 SEC) 1-0 in front of a hostile crowd of 1,227.
“This game was in the balance the entire match,” MSU head coach Aaron Gordon said. “We had two or three really good looks at goal, but just couldn't seem to be in the right spot or get the right touch on the ball.”
LSU knocked in its best opportunity of the match in the ninth minute, after a handball foul set up a free kick for Natalia Gomez at the 30-yard line. Gomez sent a curving shot to the corner of the net for the lone goal of the match, to secure a 1-0 victory.
With the win, LSU extended its home record to 8-0-3 on the season, having not dropped a contest in Baton Rouge since Oct. 30, 2014 (Auburn).
“This has been the toughest place to play in the SEC this season,” Gordon said. “We knew that coming in and knew that this team would be tough to defeat at their house.”
MSU had many chances throughout the match with the Tigers, but could not capitalize. Freshman Carly Mauldin recorded four shots in the match, while junior Ari Holmes turned in three shots.
“In a game as tight as this was it comes down to who puts away their chances,” Gordon said. “We couldn't get a clean look on frame. It was a lot of mad scrambles and the game was dead even. We just weren't able to covert tonight against LSU.”
At goal, freshman Courtney Tompkins made her third consecutive start between the posts. The Palm City, Fla., native stopped three shots in 90 minutes of play.
The Bulldogs outshot the Tigers (12-10), while LSU edged out MSU in shots on goal (4-2).
“We have to just put this game beside us at this point, we know it was a missed opportunity but we have to move forward,” Gordon said. “We can only control what our team does and we have to come out and give our best effort on Sunday.”
The Maroon and White will travel to Tuscaloosa on Sunday for the final road match of the season, with a 2 p.m. kick against Alabama to be televised on ESPNU.
For more information on the Mississippi State soccer program, follow “HailStateSOC” on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Team Stats
Gomez-Junco, Natalia (3)
Free kick from 30 yards off right post.
9:36
