After a dominating showing in their recent games, the Ragin’ Cajuns soccer team was set to continue their winning streak. This two-game win streak was tested as Louisiana faced their next foes in a Sun Belt Conference match against South Alabama. Unfortunately, that game on the 26 saw Louisiana lose 1-0.
Prior to the South Alabama game, the most recent game Louisiana won was against Troy. It was actually the freshmen that propelled the team to their 2-0 victory. Hailly Waterhouse and Tatum Beck each scored in the second half and with Louisiana’s defense, Troy was unable to match them.
The game before that was the best of Louisiana’s season. No other wins of the season compare.
The Ragin’ Cajuns defeated Alcorn State 7-0, setting a record for most goals on the road. Karleen Bedre and Rachel Sutter both scored a pair of goals. Hailey Hoffmann, Alyssa Abbott and Waterhouse added their own goals as well. Five of the total goals were scored in the second half.
This common theme of second-half domination is great to see for the team. This is heavily due to the fact that the Cajuns defense matches the effort of their offense. If the offense scores, the defense works twice as hard to prevent the other team from scoring in return. Their teamwork, focus and fight all the way till the last minute of the game is incredible.
This is why maintaining this dominating showing is important. Louisiana’s current overall record is 4-7 and they will need a lot of wins to get their record back to high standards. With only seven games left before the SBC Championships, it is crucial to keep this momentum going. It should also be noted that their conference record is 1-2, so it could go either way.
Prior to the phenomenal past two games, other season wins were not as impressive. Louisiana beat Southeastern on Sept. 3 in a close 3-2 game. Their other win came from the beginning of the season on Aug. 20 against Prairie View A & M. The Cajuns bested the Panthers 1-0 in their first official game of the season.
The Ragin’ Cajuns also had one game that tied. This exhibition match against McNeese went 1-1. The six losses were not as close for Louisiana. In fact, during the last week of August, Louisiana went on a three-game losing streak.
On Aug. 22 Mississippi State beat the Cajuns 2-0. This was followed by an even worse loss on Aug. 26 when Kentucky won against Louisiana in a brutal 5-0 bout. Aug. 29 followed with another upsetting loss, this time 4-0 versus Tennessee. Then came the quick Southeastern win before picking up three more losses in a row.
The Ragin’ Cajuns lost to Houston 2-0 on Sept. 5 and LSU 5-0 on Sept. 9. These losses with no points on the board seemed to become common. In the next game on Sept. 16, Louisiana lost 1-3 competing against Georgia State. Thankfully this game seemed to be the turning point as the Cajuns were able to score one point and begin their winning streak in the next game against Alcorn State.
The team has the skill and drive to continue to win. They just need to maintain the same level of confidence they had in their wins against Alcorn State and Troy and they will make it far. The past South Alabama game is hopefully just a temporary roadblock.
Story: Madelyn Myer