The Mississippi State soccer team is set to take its talents on the road today for the first SEC game this season against the South Carolina Gamecocks.
The girls are coming off  a nail-biting 1-0 overtime victory over the Southern Miss Golden Eagles last Sunday. This win kept the Dogs’ winning streak alive, improving to 7-0 on the year.
Not only is this the first SEC game for the team, but it is also the first road game due to conflicts in the scheduling created by Hurricane Isaac’s visit to the Gulf Coast. Junior forward Elisabeth Sullivan said although it is the first SEC and road game, she still approaches the game the same way.
“I think it is the same mentality. We know it’s going to be hard no matter if it’s home or away, so we have to go out there and play our hardest,” Sullivan said. “SEC is going to be a lot harder, so it’s more on our mind that we have to play a lot harder.”
Head coach Neil MacDonald said the team’s primary interests this weekend are starting up SEC play and how much more intense and aggressive things are going to be for the young team.
“It’s a shame we haven’t had the opportunity to travel, but I’m really not concerned about that,” MacDonald said. “That first weekend in the SEC is going to be tough. Our main concern at the end of the game is the speed, and the physical play of the SEC is going to be a challenge for some of the younger players.”
The Bulldogs have recorded five straight shutouts this season. The defense has only allowed 8.3 shots per game, and only three of them have managed to hit the back of the net.
State is currently ranked No. 15 in the nation in goals-against with an average of 0.42. Rosson herself is ranked No. 18 in the nation with a goals-against average of 0.44.
The Gamecocks are fresh off of a win over East Carolina and are 3-3-1 on the season, and the Bulldogs’ next opponent Kentucky is currently 6-1 on the season.
Senior goalie Skylar Rosson, who with her next shutout will break the all-time MSU record for career shutouts, said she cannot take all the credit for the opponents sporting a donut on their side of the scoreboard.
“I haven’t been getting that much action because the defense has been awesome,” Rosson said. “We have a lot of confidence going in, and we just have to stay focused and keep the momentum going. Both teams are really good, so we just have to stay on our toes and be ready for anything.”
State will look to keep its undefeated season alive against South Carolina tonight at 6 p.m. and at Kentucky Sundayat 12 p.m.