EUNICE, La. – LSU Eunice Women's Soccer opened its season in style with a 3-0 victory over LSU Alexandria on Saturday at the Bengal Soccer Complex.  The friendly exhibition was the Bengals' first game under the direction of new head coach Brock Ogami.
 
Citlaly Santibanez (Dallas, TX, Wylie HS) would ring in the new season with a bang, scoring in the first minute.  The sophomore displayed her ability to its fullest, winning a ball at midfield before distributing a beautiful through ball to Isabelle Smith (Lafayette, LA, Acadiana HS)h in open space down the left sideline.  Smith would charge towards net before a tackle would squirt the ball lost to the top of the 18-yard box.  Santibanez was there to corral it, beating the keeper on a one-on-one situation.
 
The Bengals would have a few more chances in the opening half, most notably a long-range missile from Smith that was scooped up.  Several offensive possessions were thwarted by mother nature, as severe storms in the afternoon left the field saturated with water.
 
LSUE would continue to trudge forward despite the conditions, scoring an insurance goal in the 58th minute.  After corner kick clearance from the Generals, Marta San Teodoro-Gonzalez (Asturias, Spain, Colegio Paula Frassinetti) intercepted the ball on the right sideline.  The sophomore made a deep run toward the endline before lofting a backside cross to Brooklyn Lough (Boise, ID, Centennial HS) charging on a back side run.  Lough buried the point-blank header for her first collegiate goal.
 
Nina McManus (Lafayette, LA, John Paul The Great Academy) would begin the celebration a little early, rocketing an 89th minute tally to conclude the scoring for LSU Eunice.
 
The goalkeeping duo of Leigh Brophy (Cape Town, South Africa, Groote Schuur HS) and Avery Wright (Temple, TX, Salado HS) shared duties in net.  Neither faced a serious threat from the Generals as the Bengals preserved the clean sheet.  The new LSUE backline of Jasmine Liddell (London, England, Barking Abbey School) and Claudia Jimenez (Madrid, Spain, Logos International School) also played a critical role in the shutout, warding off several LSUA build ups.
 
LSUE now turns its attention to the regular season, opening the campaign against perennial power Monroe College.  The Bengals and Mustangs will play at Tyler Junior College on Saturday, August 20.