The Extra Point: Looking at Alabama Soccer's Game vs. Jackson State

The Alabama Crimson Tide's soccer season has gone better than perhaps the most optimistic fan could have hoped for, and the top ranked Tide will look to continue their run tonight against a tough Jackson State team.
The Tigers finished the year 11-7-1, including a SWAC tournament championship. They lead the SWAC conference in fewest goals allowed, and allowed just two goals over their three tournament games.
The Tide finished their season 19-2-1, including their most recent 1-0 loss against 2nd seed South Carolina in the SEC tournament. While the Tigers are a stout defensive team, Alabama has had an impressive offensive season, averaging 2.68 goals per game, and totaling over 400 shots throughout the season.
The offense is lead by Riley Mattingly Parker, who scored 14 goals and six assists over her 18 games started, while earning the SEC Forward of the Year honor.
That's not to say the Tide are not a good defensive team, as they let up less than a goal a game on average (0.59), and have allowed 189 shots against them. The defense is lead by Reyna Reyes, named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year.
With the game kicking off at 6 p.m. CT in Tuscaloosa, the home field that Alabama has been able to protect over the season, going 9-0, will be crucial for their tournament success. The Tigers will be hard to break down, but the Tide will look to lean on their stars that have helped them throughout the year to get the job done.

Joe Schatz is a junior at The University of Alabama studying News Media and history from Annapolis, Maryland. He is currently an intern at BamaCentral covering Alabama Women's Basketball.
Follow @JoeSchatz15