This weekend the Mississippi State soccer team faces another tough SEC weekend as the Bulldogs (5-10, 0-6 SEC) welcome Georgia (5-8-1, 3-2-1 SEC) tonight and Tennessee (3-2, 6-8 SEC) on Sunday.
Georgia comes to Starkville on a two game winning streak having beaten both Vanderbilt and Kentucky last weekend. UGA defender Megan Tomlinson was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week for her efforts in leading her team to victory.
Including last season, MSU comes into this weekend on a 10-match conference losing streak.
“Welcome to the SEC,” MSU coach Neil Macdonald said.
The last SEC team State beat was Georgia, and since that win in Athens, every other SEC team has picked up a win over MSU.
“It’s not going to be two easy games, but we are in a great frame of mind. We have had a great week of practice,” Macdonald said. “We went to two-a-days for a while and got a great response from the team.”
Senior Hannah Tyler echoed her coach’s confidence.
“Especially this week everyone is working hard and practices are going well,” Tyler said. “We are all working together as a team. We are happy with the way we are playing and hopefully we can transfer that to the games.”
State has improved over recent outings but has struggled to convert chances into goals during the SEC campaign.
MSU goalkeeper Taryn Holland thinks the defense is ready for the tough weekend. “I think ultimately we are really strong on defense, we are going to change things up. I think Hannah [Tyler] might come back a little,” Holland said.
Coach Macdonald said he believes his team will be up to the challenge of the two SEC East powers.
“We have played very, very well,” Macdonald said. “We have just had a couple mental breakdowns.”
Macdonald has said that once State removes those mental breakdowns from its game, the Bulldogs will be a very dangerous team.
“We are needing the upperclassmen to step up and keep leading,” Macdonald said. “These trips are tough, I’m glad that we are home for the next couple of games.”
Tonight’s match is MSU’s first home match in 19 days. Tonight is “Kick for the Cure Night,” an effort to support breast cancer awareness. Specialty T-shirts with a pink ribbon and the Mississippi State logo will be handed out to the first 125 fans in attendance.