After already heading a cross from freshman Gabriela Maldonado off the crossbar in the 57^th minute, Baucom found herself in a similar position as the match entered the 70^th minute when she buried the game-winner from Clarke’s cross for the game’s only goal as LSU (3-0-1) remained unbeaten to open the 2015 season.

The Tigers also handed the Golden Gophers (2-1-1) their first defeat of the campaign while leveling the series at one win apiece after Minnesota scored a 2-1 win in their inaugural match in the 2013 season.

Practice paid off for senior Gracie Campbell when she won the initial 50-50 header in midfield before Clarke found herself one-on-one with Minnesota’s left back down the right-hand side. Clarke and Baucom played a 1-2 near the top of the box with Baucom continuing her run into the six-yard box and Clarke then picking out her teammate from near the end line.

Baucom’s team-leading third goal of the season completed a perfect weekend for the Tigers as they emerged with two wins on the weekend as hosts of the Battle on the Bayou. Baucom also found the scoresheet on Friday night in LSU’s 4-1 win over Western Kentucky to finish as the leading scorer of the tournament and earn the title of Offensive MVP at the Battle on the Bayou.

“It was just a great build up to the goal with Gracie (Campbell) winning the header and Summer (Clarke) doing what she does when she gets one-on-one,” Baucom said. “We work a lot on winning second balls, and she (Gracie Campbell) won it there. Summer put in a great cross, and I just had to make sure I got it on target. We deserved it with the way we came out in the second half.”

Clarke, who was also named to the Battle on the Bayou All-Tournament Team for her performance on the weekend, talked about setting up Baucom’s game-winner with her first assist of the season.

“Jorian (Baucom) was getting into those spots a lot in that second half, and I just looked up and saw her again kind of getting in between their two center backs,” Clarke said of the build up to the goal. “I just thought to myself, ‘I hope this is a good cross.’ Thankfully it was and she finished it from there. We’ve got a good chemistry going to start the season, so we want to continue working on that for sure.”

The Tigers were outstanding in defense throughout the 90 minutes as they limited Minnesota to just four shot attempts and without a shot on goal on the afternoon. The Tigers even outshot the Golden Gophers by a 9-1 margin in the second half, including a 4-0 advantage in shots on target in the final frame.

With senior defender Alex Arlitt leading the way as the Defensive MVP at the Battle on the Bayou, LSU’s back line stood strong throughout the weekend as Arlitt teamed with the likes of junior Megan Lee, sophomore Jordane Carvery and freshman Alex Thomas in limiting Western Kentucky and Minnesota to a combined three shots in the second half over two games.

Thomas even joined the likes of senior midfielder Natalia Gomez-Junco and sophomore forward Debbie Hahn on the Battle on the Bayou All-Tournament Team as each turned in an outstanding performance in leading the Tigers to two wins on the weekend. Minnesota and Western Kentucky came away with a split from their two matches, while Stephen F. Austin went down to defeat on both match days.

Senior goalkeeper Catalina Rubiano also kept her first career clean sheet in the win, despite not being forced to make a save and facing just four shots from the Golden Gophers on the afternoon.

“Defensively, I thought we were excellent throughout the weekend,” said LSU head coach Brian Lee. “We stayed organized, and really battled for 180 minutes over these two games. Particularly to play the way we did in the second half of both games, and then to hold Minnesota without a shot on goal today, it says a lot about how well we worked as a defensive unit at the back.”

The Tigers will look to maintain their unbeaten run to start the 2015 season next weekend when they welcome Indiana, Ball State and Middle Tennessee State to Baton Rouge for the Stomp in the Swamp beginning on Friday at the LSU Soccer Stadium. LSU will face Ball State on Friday at 7:30 p.m. CT and Indiana next Sunday at 1 p.m., while the tournament also features matches between Indiana and Middle Tennessee State on Friday at 5 p.m. and Ball State and Middle Tennessee State next Sunday at 11 a.m.

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