No. 23 Hogs Battle LSU to 2-2 Draw Despite Hot Start

BATON ROUGE, La. – No. 23 Arkansas (4-4-4, 2-1-3 SEC) got off to a lightning-fast start with two goals in the first three minutes in Friday night’s match at LSU (3-8-3, 1-3-2 SEC), but allowed two unanswered goals in the remaining 87 minutes to lead to a 2-2 draw.

The Hogs set the tone early and junior defender Madden McDonald forced a save just 13 seconds into the match. McDonald took the ensuing corner kick that found the head of senior midfielder Cora Hair. Hair headed the ball down inside the six-yard box, but no LSU defenders were able to clear it before it bounced over the line.

Hair’s goal was the fastest for the Razorbacks since Ava Tankersley scored 24 seconds into the 2022 NCAA Tournament match against Missouri State.

Arkansas doubled its lead 57 seconds later on another header, this one in open play. Junior midfielder Aniyah Nurse-Whyte, out wide, perfectly crossed a ball into the 18-yard box, where senior forward Bella Field was waiting near the penalty spot. Field whipped her head towards goal and her attempt curled just over the hand of Tiger goalkeeper Audur Scheving.

LSU quickly responded with its first goal nearly two minutes later via a strike just inside the penalty box from midfielder Linka Ono.

Despite the hot start, neither team had much of an opportunity for the remaining 40 minutes of the first half. The Razorbacks led 2-1, their first halftime lead against an SEC team on the road this season, and outshot the Tigers 7-6.

Arkansas staved off numerous LSU attacks throughout the second half, including a goal-line stop from sophomore forward Vailana Tu’ua in the 53rd minute.

The Tigers, however, found their game-tying goal in the 81st minute on a cross in from Ono that was not cleared by the Hogs’ backline. After one bounce, LSU forward Berglind Hlynsdottir fired point blank past Arkansas goalkeeper Keegan Smith and into the back of the net.

The Razorbacks had one corner kick after the equalizer but failed to find a winner in the final minutes.

LSU outshot the Hogs 12-7 in the second half and 18-14 for the match. Arkansas won the corner kick battle 7-2.

Game Notes

• Cora Hair scored her first goal of the season and her second as a Razorback.
• Bella Field scored for the fourth time this season and the 21st all-time. She tied fifth-year midfielder Zoe Susi to lead Arkansas this season.
• Per the SEC Network+ broadcast, Hair’s goal was the fastest the Tigers have given up in their program’s history.

Up Next

Arkansas will remain on the road and face Tennessee next Thursday, October 15, before returning home to host Florida on Sunday, October 19.

For more information on Arkansas soccer, follow @RazorbackSoccer on social media.