For the first time in program history, Texas will play in the Southeastern Conference tournament. The reigning Big 12 tournament champions are the third-seeded team in the conference and will be facing eleventh-seeded LSU in the quarterfinals on Nov. 5 in Pensacola, Florida.
Texas finished third in its maiden SEC voyage, ending with a conference record of 6–3–1 and a 13–3–2 regular season record. Texas earned a first-round bye to open up the SEC tournament.
“You’re playing some of the best of the best, and it’s difficult, because every day, every match, everybody can compete,” head coach Angela Kelly said. “There’s not as much parity as there is in the SEC so if you go one to 16 and there’s people stealing points from people every single night, to get three points is difficult.”
Texas will be playing the Tigers for the second time this season. Three weeks ago the Longhorns went into Baton Rouge and walked away with a 3-1 victory with goals from freshman forward Amalia Villarreal, and senior midfielders Jilly Shimkin and Lexi Missimo.
“(LSU head coach) Sian Hudson’s done a tremendous job at LSU,” Kelly said. “I’m not certain if they’ve played when we scout, we’ll take a look if they’ve played one another this season, but just knowing the personalities and the styles of play, it’s going to be a battle.”
After their victory early this season, Texas’s all-time record against the Tigers improved to 4–1–1 in six matchups. Their only loss of the series was a 3-1 loss last year.
LSU’s path to the quarterfinal has not been easy, having to upset the sixth-seeded Auburn Tigers, in a narrow 2-1 victory.
“I’m so proud of the team. We’re excited to get back out there and take on Texas on Tuesday,” Hudson said postgame.
The Longhorns take a serious amount of momentum entering tournament play, having won four out of their last six games in October, and outscoring their opponents with 12 goals in favor and eight goals against in that same timeframe.
“We honestly, truly just take one game at a time,” Kelly said. “I know that’s coach speak … but if you ask our players, we’re talking about being where our feet are and being in the moment. We train today. We’re preparing today to be better tomorrow.”
A point of emphasis that will influence the final score will be Texas’ defense going up against a fiery LSU offense that has scored 32 goals and averages almost 13 shots a game this season.
However, the Texas backline has only allowed their opponents to score 15 goals this season, and senior goalkeeper Mia Justus posted ten clean sheets with an opportunity to tie the program record of 11 clean sheets in a single season, depending on Tuesday’s result.
