Coming off a disappointing weekend the Middle Tennessee State Invitational, the Mississippi State soccer team will take its 2-2-0 record back to Starkville this weekend to open its home schedule against University of Central Florida Friday at 7 p.m. and Rice University Sunday at 12 p.m.State recorded its first two losses at last week’s MTSU tournament, first from a narrow 2-1 loss to Western Kentucky, then followed by a nail-biting 5-4 loss to MTSU that saw three goals scored in the last six minutes.
Treena Ferguson added two more goals to her account over the weekend to lead the team with four goals while Bethany Frazier has equaled that number in assists to lead the team.
As a whole, the team has scored nine goals in four games so far, while letting in the same number.
Friday’s game against Central Florida will be the Bulldog’s first home game of the season and also the first time the teams have faced each other.
UCF is coming off back to back wins over University of Nevada-Las Vegas and University of California-Davis. and is 3-1-0 on the season, with its only loss coming in a 1-0 defeat to 21st-ranked Penn State.
Rice (4-0-1) is also coming off a run of wins, downing Dartmouth, Texas Christian and Stephen F. Austin by a combined score of 8-1. Last year, Rice narrowly defeated MSU by a score of 2-3.
Head coach Neil MacDonald said the teams’ contrasting records over recent games could turn out to be an advantage for the Bulldogs.
“The girls are very determined to win,” MacDonald said. “We had a tough weekend. We played really well, but we just had some mental errors that we’re looking to stamp out this weekend.”
MacDonald is confident that a week of practice can change things around for the Bulldogs as they look to build off their opening two wins.
The team can look forward to the return of junior Mariclaire Fancher, who has been out with an ankle injury since the start of the season.
“Fancher should be a big boost for us,” MacDonald said. “She’s an experienced player and a leader on the team.”
MacDonald said the squad is grateful to be returning home and expects a significant advantage in playing in front of the Bulldog faithful.
“Playing at home helps us out tremendously,” MacDonald said. “We’re delighted to be playing at home on the field we train on everyday.”
The team will also welcome the strong support of the home fans, something that impacts the mood of the game.
“We always receive good support from the community,” MacDonald said. “There’s usually a good crowd, especially on Friday nights. The more noise they make, the more it helps us out.