2022 LSU Gumbo - Book - Page 22
Photos by Georgia Jones
The LSU soccer team’s year came to an end in Memphis.
They were knocked out of the first round of the NCAA
tournament by No. 18 Memphis in a shutout match. The
Tigers’ record moved to 11-8-1 while Memphis progressed
to 14-4-2.
The most devastating part of the match was
undoubtedly the Tigers’ fight throughout the match before
being blown out 3-0. The two Tiger teams kept a 0-0 score
all the way up until the 50th minute. LSU seemed to lose
their stride in that moment as they allowed Memphis to
double the lead in the 74th minute followed by a third goal
just four minutes afterward.
As always, Head Coach Sian Hudson kept a calm stature
as she pushed her focus toward what stood in the future.
“Definitely a tough one for us today,” Hudson said. “But
I think as we reflect on this year as a whole we had a lot of
really big moments.”
LSU came into the match with high energy, putting
pressure on Memphis the moment they hit the field. Wasila
Diwura-Soale shot an on-target attempt by the ninth
minute. Midfielder Meghan Johnson gave LSU the closest
chance at a goal when she sent a header towards the net.
However, the shot was narrowly deflected by goalkeeper
Elizabeth Moberg.
LSU’s Mollee Swift stayed on par for the entire first half
and made two saves herself. Between Memphis’s offense
and LSU’s lack of ball control by the second half though,
Swift was struggling to keep up. That’s when Memphis
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made their attack and scored three goals in less than 30
minutes. Swift actually made saves in the second half
with a total of three but was exhausted by the Memphis
front, who shot 19 times overall. The purple and gold had
a 60% shot percentage, but only shot a mere five times in
comparison.
In the face of such a crushing blow to end their season,
the team wants to remember all of the high points they
experienced this season. To name a couple, the team held a
14-game winning streak and later defeated No. 1 Arkansas,
which was arguably the biggest upset in the program’s
history.
“We’ve been able to take this program to a different level
this year,” Hudson said. “Our 10 graduating seniors have
laid a strong foundation with this program and I thank
them for that. For us moving forward, it’s about building on
what we did this year.”
Fans were more disappointed to see the team’s seniors
last official time in action than the defeat itself though.
This was the last fall game for some of the Tigers’ top
players, a majority of whom were on the 2018 SEC
Champions team.
The defeat marked the end of an outstanding season full
of record-breaking moments for LSU soccer. On the bright
side, fans should be excited to see what LSU can bring to
the table in the spring season as the seniors gradually pass
the torch to the remaining Tigers who’ll take the reins in
the 2022 year.