Fresh off a 2-0 start last weekend, Cougar soccer (2-0-0) will look to keep the ball rolling against a pair of Tigers at Robertson Stadium this weekend, when Grambling State visits Friday and Louisiana State University follows on Sunday.
Grambling State (2-0-2) is coming off the kind of season any first year coach would hope to emulate. They took the Southwestern Athletic Conference last year at 9-7-2 before being bounced out in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Championship Tournament, under the supervision of then-rookie head coach Tamura Crawley.
This season, Grambling State has looked a little shaky in comparison to last. The only common opponent the Cougars and Tigers have is University of Louisiana at Lafayette, which trounced Grambling State 4-0 as opposed to a 2-1 Cougar win, both at Lafayette.
The stars for Grambling State are in the net and in the midfield.
Shutting down two-time, SWAC Offensive Player Of The Year senior Natasha Nzeakor will be a key for the Cougar defense, as she has already tallied three points in the first four games of the season.
In the net, Grambling’s pre-season SWAC All-Conference keeper sophomore Cherie Silas, who was instrumental in leading the team to the SWAC Conference Tournament victory, has gotten off to another impressive start, allowing just one goal in her two matches so far.
If Grambling State runs Silas out in the net, the offense may have a tough run of it, especially since they only got off six shots against Lafayette on Sunday.
LSU (4-0-0) should provide the Cougars with a real challenge. Coach Brian Lee has the added benefit of two Freshman All-Americans from last year: defender Chelsea Potts and forward Michelle Makasini.
LSU has dominated its opponents this year, and is starting to get recognition for such with votes for the Top 25 in numerous polls. They’re coming off a brilliant performance in the Samford Bulldog Classic, where they ran up 11 goals against Memphis and Miami.
Houston will come into the Grambling match a little short-handed, with freshman defender Brittany Cannon suspended after drawing a red card in last Sunday’s tilt with UL-Lafayette.
The Cougars will again have their work cut out for them. LSU will be the biggest test the Cougars have had since UCLA came to Robertson Stadium and got rained out.
