LSU, Auburn to meet in SEC soccer tourney

• Advocate news services
• Published: Nov 6, 2009

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ORANGE BEACH, Ala. — A spot in the SEC tournament final will be on the line at 5 p.m. today when the 13th-ranked and No. 2-seeded LSU soccer team plays No. 6-seeded Auburn in the first of two semifinal matches at the Orange Beach Sportsplex.

In the opening round Wednesday, LSU (13-4-3) took a 4-2 win over No. 7 seed Vanderbilt, while Auburn (10-7-3) beat No. 3 seed Ole Miss 2-1.

In the other semifinal at 7:30 p.m., No. 1 seed Florida plays No. 4 seed South Carolina.

The final is 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

LSU won 2-0 Oct. 4 at Auburn.

“We know we are going to get a great challenge from Auburn as we always do,” LSU coach Brian Lee said in a news release. “It’s a big rivalry game for both teams, and that environment is sure to be magnified in a tournament atmosphere like this.

“It’s important that we match their effort and intensity for the full 90 minutes if we hope to advance to the final. We must compete from start to finish. It’s that simple.”

By scoring four goals in its win over Vanderbilt, LSU set a team record at the SEC tournament as it had never scored more than two goals in 10 previous matches. That included a pair of first-half goals by senior All-SEC midfielder Melissa Clarke.

Auburn is in the semifinals for the first time since 2005.

Volleyball

NO. 19 LSU OPENS STRETCH RUN: The magic number for No. 19 LSU to clinch its fifth straight division title is down to one as LSU begins a string of five of its last seven matches on the road, beginning with a meeting at 7 p.m. today at Ole Miss.

The Tigers (18-5, 12-2 SEC), winners of 11 of their last 12 matches, have opened up a 5.5 match lead over Auburn in the SEC Western Division race.

“We were fortunate in the first half of the SEC schedule to have a lot of home matches,” LSU coach Fran Flory said. “Our team has done an excellent job throughout the season on the road. We’ve been more focused and determined away from home. When you have a senior group, that’s the best time that you could end up with this type of schedule.”