Mississippi State’s soccer team has not gotten off to the start in conference play it had hoped this season.
This past weekend, the team played two conference games against Auburn and No. 16 Missouri. State lost both games 2-0. Those two losses dropped the Bulldogs to  0-7-1 in conference play and 7-7-1 overall.
In the game against Auburn, State put up a valiant effort as the game was tied up to the 63rd minute before the Tigers scored the first goal. State had opportunities to score, but the game just did not go the Dogs’ way, nor did the shot discrepancy as the Bulldogs were outshot 20 to eight.
Senior goalie Skylar Rosson recorded a season high 12 saves in the game, becoming only the second MSU keeper to eclipse the 300 saves mark for her career.
Rosson ranks fifth in the SEC with 68 saves on the year.
Against Missouri, the Bulldogs fought hard, but they were out-matched and out-possessed as Missouri outshot MSU 36 to 11. The defense played well, but there is only so much the girls can do when their opponent records three times as many shots as they do. 
With only five games remaining, the Bulldogs need to win four of those games to have any hope of making the SEC tournament. If MSU is going to pull it off, the girls have to start scoring goals.
Scoring, or lack thereof, has been the biggest issue for State in conference play so far this season. MSU has only scored two goals in eight conference games and has been shut out in the last five games. At this point, ties are not going to cut it. State must win some games, and the only way to win is to score at least one goal, which has proven tough for the Bulldogs so far.
Junior forward Elisabeth Sullivan, who leads the team in goals and shot attempts, said she believes the effort and opportunities have been there to score but the outcome just has not gone State’s way this season.
“We keep trying really hard but things just haven’t been connecting,” Sullivan said. “We just have to keep practicing and working on our shooting.”
Senior captain Madison McKee seconded that opinion and said State’s scoring woes have come from a bit of bad luck.
“We get the chances, but we just won’t put the ball in the back of the net,” McKee said. “We’re hitting the crossbar every game, and we just can’t connect with the back of the net right now. It just seems like things aren’t going our way.”
Despite starting the first eight conference games winless, Rosson said she is still optimistic about State’s chances of making the SEC tournament.
“We have five games left, and I feel if we win four out of the five or all five, we definitely have a great shot of going,” Rosson said. “I’m not nervous at all about not making it.”
If the Bulldogs are going to turn around their season and potentially make the tournament, they will have to play well this weekend and at least get one win.
On Friday, the team plays Alabama at 7 p.m., and after that, the team will travel to Gainesville to play Florida on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Alabama has only won two conference games and has not been very impressive so far this season, so the Tide presents the ideal situation for MSU to get its first conference win. A win Friday will be key because Florida is much tougher as the Gators are currently 7-1 in conference play and ranked No. 12 in the nation.
One thing is for certain: if State comes away from this weekend winless, the chance to play in the SEC tournament will be nothing more than a distant dream.