After jumping out to an early 2-0 lead with goals by junior Carlie Banks in the ninth minute and senior Taryne Boudreau in the 17^th minute, the LSU soccer team held on for a crucial 2-1 win over Georgia on Sunday at the LSU Soccer Stadium to extend its unbeaten streak to nine-straight matches and take over sole possession of first place in the SEC standings.

The Tigers (9-3-1, 4-0 SEC) are the only team in the Southeastern Conference to secure all 12 points from the first four games of league play while climbing to the top of the table following Auburn’s 2-0 defeat on Sunday at Mississippi State for its first SEC defeat of the season.

Auburn fell into a tie for second place on the table with Florida as each side has secured nine points in the first four SEC matches. Five other teams trail LSU in a tie for fourth place on six points.

Sunday’s derby triumph over Georgia (8-4, 2-2) handed the Tigers their sixth-straight win this season and extended their unbeaten streak to nine-straight games as they have posted a sparkling 8-0-1 mark over that span since a 2-1 road win at Houston back on Sept. 6.

The win also extended LSU’s unbeaten streak to seven-straight games against SEC opponents dating back to a 1-0 triumph in the 2010 regular season finale. That matches a program record as the Tigers are now at 6-0-1 in their last seven outings against conference opponents during that span.

The Tigers are now 4-0 in league play for the second time in three seasons as they match their best start in team history from the 2009 season. That team went on to finish runner-up in the final SEC standings after posting a team-best 8-2-1 mark and 25 points in league play while finishing just one point back of Florida for what would have been the first SEC championship in program history.

“We were great to start the match today. We were flowing early and really put the pressure on Georgia for the effort that we showed,” said LSU head coach Brian Lee. “The momentum turned in their favor when they got the goal to make it 2-1. I thought we showed championship character to come away from this one with a win. It’s always a great weekend to get six points from Georgia and Tennessee.”

Banks took advantage of LSU’s first scoring opportunity of the contest while scoring her second goal this season with the breakthrough at the 8:07 mark to give the Tigers the early 1-0 advantage.

After taking possession in the midfield, senior Taryne Boudreau slotted a perfect through ball to Banks on the breakaway behind the Georgia back line. With Bulldog goalkeeper Ashley Baker racing off her line to challenge, Banks finished with a strike inside the left post from about 10 yards for the early lead.

Boudreau then extended LSU’s lead to 2-0 in the 17^th minute of play with her eighth goal of the campaign on a brilliant strike from near the penalty spot. Boudreau collected a centering pass into the box by fellow senior Natalie Martineau with her back to goal, turned to her right to round her defender and ripped a left-footed strike near the spot inside the right post at the 16:04 mark for the two-goal advantage.

And Banks nearly pushed the lead to 3-0 just minutes later after she ran free on a breakaway with another ball played past the Georgia back line. With her eye again looking far post, Banks fired a wide-open strike from just inside the penalty area that was saved by Baker diving to her right.

Baker’s save sparked a turn of events for the Bulldogs as they answered with their first goal of the day on the other end just 83 seconds after Banks’ missed opportunity on the breakaway.

After the Bulldogs won their first corner kick of the match, sophomore midfielder Alexa Newfield picked out senior defender Jenna Buckley open near the right post with her service into the box. While Buckley’s initial shot was saved by LSU goalkeeper Mo Isom, sophomore midfielder Nicole Locandro pounced on a rebound and pulled one back for Georgia with her second goal of the season at the 22:22 mark.

While Georgia threatened to equalize into the second half, the Tigers held their ground defensively to take the 2-1 victory and earn their spot at the top of the SEC table. Isom proved to be the difference for LSU in the second half as she came up with three big saves in the final frame to secure the victory.

With the win, the Tigers improve to 4-2-1 against the Georgia Bulldogs in Lee’s seven seasons. That also includes an unbeaten 3-0-1 mark in games played in Baton Rouge.

After wrapping up their eight-game homestand on Sunday afternoon, the Tigers will go on the road for six of their last seven SEC matches to wrap up the 2011 regular season. LSU returns to action on Friday night with a trip to Nashville, Tenn., to battle the Vanderbilt Commodores as kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CDT. The Tigers then travel to Lexington, Ky., to take on the Kentucky Wildcats on Oct. 9 at noon.

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