Late penalty lifts LSU soccer to complete nail-biting comeback victory against Texas A&M

LSU Junior Midfielder Ava Amsden (22) in action on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026 during the first half of a matchup against The University of Georgia women’s soccer team at the LSU Soccer Field

In its pursuit for points in the standings, LSU soccer took down Texas A&M in a match that made it hard to think both teams sat in the bottom four of the conference ahead of the opening whistle.

Digging out of a 2-goal deficit, the Tigers found the win at Ellis Field on the right side of a 4-3 scoreline, battling all the way to the final minute of play.

Now 2-4-2 in the conference, LSU extended the Aggies to eight weeks winless. With the win coming in the return of head coach Sian Hudson, LSU finds itself ahead of Tennessee for the 12th spot in the SEC standings and final SEC tournament bid.

LSU began the afternoon by adjusting the shape it’s used for most of the season. Senior defender Kelsey Major took the frontline alongside Ava Galligan, a spot that has faced the absence of senior Allie Fryer for the previous three weeks.

Though Texas A&M nearly took the lead in the opening minute, the Aggies were quickly challenged by the Tigers. LSU gained multiple set piece opportunities in the first half, but couldn’t manage to convert any of them throughout almost the entire game.

A trend that has been common for the purple and gold almost every game, defensive struggles gave way for the Aggies to strike first. Poking the ball past defender Jocelyn Olliverre and goalie Auður Scheving, forward Ireland Churchill put Texas in the lead with her eighth goal of the season.

Eager to equalize the game, LSU tried to press back on the Aggie squad, but eventually penalty kick would be called in favor of Texas. Taken by Churchill, an easy shot past Scheving would give the freshman her ninth goal for a third career brace.

The goal marked the ninth penalty kick LSU has conceded on, the most in the conference.

With an early 2-0 lead, the Aggies offensive dominance quickly turned the match from anyone’s game to an uphill battle for the Tigers who were struggling to prevent turnovers of possession.

It was after a nearly a six-minute challenge intermission that the Tigers started to reset the pace of the game, looking to at least cut the lead in half before halftime. The opportunity arrived after Amy Smith entered the game for Brielyn Knowles and at the 43-minute mark.

A dump in by defender Emma Alvord lined up perfectly for Smith to send in a header that found the back of the net through the top left corner, marking one of the junior’s first 2 goals of the year.

Chopping the lead to one, LSU entered the second half with a renewed mindset that clearly showed in the following minutes.

The Tigers stretched the game, ending the full 90 with 21 shots compared to the Aggies’ 13. Opportunities by Smith and Galligan would increase momentum for the Tigers, however sophomore Sariyah Bailey would find the equalizer.

Cashing in her second goal of the season on the right side of the net, Bailey and Galligan worked in tandem to even the score at the halfway point of the second 45, however just 40 seconds later, Texas restored the lead.

A free kick for the Aggies bounced around the box before a shot by Kieana Smith snuck past Scheving, tallying the freshman’s first goal of the year in Texas A&M’s highest scoring SEC matchup of 2026.

Time continued to tick down as both teams showed their desperation for the three points on the table and the final 10 minutes of play saw the outcome-deciding action of the game.

The Galligan-Smith duo made its return to give the Tigers new life. As Galligan placed a blocked headball in front of the net, Smith found herself just at the corner of the net to tap in the rebound at the last second, granting the junior her second career brace.

Just nine minutes later, a free kick for LSU sent the ball into the A&M box, where a handball by freshman Leah Diaz was challenged and granted the Tigers a penalty kick in the final minute of play.

Taking the right foot shot, junior Ava Amsden sent the ball into the top left corner of the net, handing LSU its second conference win of the season.

Next hosting Mississippi State on Oct. 25, the Tigers have just two games left before a possible trip to Pensacola arrives.

My sister told me about it, and I thought it was a really cool opportunity to be able to write about something I love and get involved in athletics.

I plan to go to law school back on the west coast to become an athlete agent, preferably working in MMA, the MLB or even maybe the WSL.