After a euphoric upset and a lackluster loss against the Southeastern Conference’s two nationally ranked sides, Mississippi State’s soccer team has reason to be both wary and confident as it travels to Vanderbilt on Sunday.The teams share similar positions in their respective divisions, with State (6-9-1, 2-5-1 SEC) tied for fourth with Alabama in the SEC Western Division, and Vanderbilt (5-8-2, 2-4-1 SEC) in sole possession of fifth place in the SEC East.
State recorded its biggest result of the season last Friday with a 1-0 win over 17th-ranked Georgia, before a 4-0 loss to No. 11 Tennessee on Sunday canceled hopes of a weekend sweep over the SEC leaders.
Sophomore Katelyn Graben showed she has a knack for scoring important goals, scoring the winner in the 81st minute against Georgia to mark her third game-winning goal of the season and fourth goal overall. State then suffered a deflating defeat to Tennessee the following match, losing 4-0 in a game that saw the Bulldogs outshot 31-2.
MSU goalkeeper Taryn Holland has played in every game for the Bulldogs, posting a 1.99 goals against average and making 86 saves in the process, second in the SEC. Senior Treena Ferguson and Graben lead the team in points, with 12 and 15 points, respectively. Ferguson’s 25 shots on goal ties her for the most accurate shot taker in the SEC, while Bethany Frazier leads the team and most of the conference with six assists. State’s inconsistent form has been a pattern of late, with a positive result coming every other game in their last seven matches. The Bulldogs have not lost twice in a row since a three-game losing streak at the end of September to Memphis, LSU and Arkansas.
Vanderbilt is coming off a 2-0 win over Arkansas on Sunday, ending the Commodores’ threegame losing streak that included losses to top-20 teams Georgia and Tennessee. The win was just the team’s second win in seven home games this season.
Freshman Molly Kinsella opened the scoring with her team-leading sixth goal of the season, while Amy Wilcox scored her fourth goal of the season to secure the first Southeastern Conference win for the Commodores.
The shutout marked the sixth time that Vanderbilt has blanked an opponent this season, with goalkeeper Rachel Bachtel recording three saves to improve her 1.28 goals against average. VU leads the SEC in shots per game (18.33) and is second in the conference in shots overall (275) after 15 games.
In the teams’ previous meeting last season, the Bulldogs were shut out 4-0 in Starkville. All four players on the score sheet from that game remain with Vanderbilt squad this season.