“I feel very confident that I can get the job done on Friday I have no doubts whatsoever that we will not lose to Missouri,” says freshman goalie and SEC defensive player of the week Luisa Marzotto.
With a victory or tie against the No. 25 Missouri Tigers, the Bulldogs will have compiled a streak of six consecutive games without a loss. The streak dates back to the final game of the 2002 season when MSU defeated Jacksonville State 3-1.
While Marzotto will focus on preventing the Tiger offense from scoring, she will also be aiming at some school records of her own.
If Marzotto and the Bulldog defense can blank the Tigers, it would mark the fourth straight game that she has not allowed a goal-an MSU record.
“We take it one game at a time,” said Marzotto. “Our goal is to shutout the other team every time we step onto the field.”
Because Marzotto’s play in goal has been so dominant this year, she is less than an hour of play from breaking the school’s record for consecutive scoreless minutes.
“I feel great about the way I’ve have played so far this year,” said Marzotto. “But stats don’t really matter much to me because if I have them in the back of my mind during the game I could make mistakes that I normally wouldn’t.”
As the MSU women’s soccer team heads into its fifth match of 2003, the Bulldogs will be looking to extend their undefeated record and to set a number of school records.
If the Bulldogs can accomplish this feat, they will tie an MSU record that has stood for seven years. The last time that the MSU women’s soccer team went unbeaten for six games was from Oct. 28, 1995, through Sept. 8, 1996.
Although three major school records are riding with this weekend’s performance, head coach Neil McGuire is more focused on the situation at hand-winning.
“Missouri is a very talented and organized soccer team,” said McGuire. “We’re gonna have to be at our best to compete with them.”
The Bulldogs will definitely have their work cut out for them when they take the field tonight. MSU must shut down a prominent Missouri offense that has scored at least two goals in each of its first four games.
The Tigers are led by junior Kristen Heil who was recently named Big 12 offensive player of the week.
“We’re really proud of the way we’ve played so far this year,” said MSU junior forward Ngum Suh. “We’re not really worried about the unbeaten streak, we’re concerned about going out and doing what we need to do to beat Missouri.”