The month of September ended with a bad taste in Mississippi State’s collective mouths.
After opening Southeastern Conference play with a win over Auburn, the Bulldogs gave up late goals in losses to Texas A&M and LSU. But their most deflating result came against Tennessee on Sept. 29, when MSU squandered a three-goal lead in the final 20 minutes and wound up with a disappointing draw.
Then October rolled around, and as the weather cooled off, the Bulldogs (10-4-4, 5-3-2 SEC) heated up.
“We were playing well. There were a few mistakes here and there that were costing us in games,” MSU head coach James Armstrong said. “We’ve tightened up on a number of defensive things, and we’re creating chances still and putting some of those away. It’s a special group, we’ve known that all along, and now thankfully, their hard work is getting rewarded with some positive results. You want to be playing your best soccer come the end of the season.”
The turnaround started with a 1-0 win at Florida, MSU’s first-ever win in Gainesville in which Aitana Martinez-Montoya scored the match’s lone goal and Maddy Anderson needed to make just one save for the shutout. Back home three days later, the Bulldogs defeated rival Ole Miss for the fourth consecutive year on a first-half penalty kick by Ilana Izquierdo.
MSU then grabbed two road wins over ranked teams in an eight-day span, defeating No. 18 Kentucky and No. 16 Alabama 2-0 — sandwiched around a scoreless draw against Vanderbilt — to vault into the top 25. The Bulldogs’ spectacular run of form ended last Thursday with a 1-0 loss at No. 10 Arkansas, but MSU still completed its best conference season in program history.
“When you go on the road, it’s always hard,” Armstrong said. “The travel is hard, you’re playing in a hostile environment, so it comes down to the mentality and character of the players. This group believes and they’re excited to play anybody. They feel like they can beat anybody on any given day.”
Martinez-Montoya, a transfer from Fairleigh Dickinson, leads the Bulldogs in goals with five, with sophomore Maggie Wadsworth and Southern Miss transfer Izquierdo each one behind. Hannah Johnson is even with Wadsworth for the team lead with three assists.
MSU’s biggest strength down the stretch, though, has been the defense. Anderson recorded nine shutouts with an .828 save percentage en route to a spot on the all-SEC second team, while midfielder Macey Hodge helped keep balls out of harm’s way and earned all-conference first team honors. Armstrong also highlighted the play of Megan Day and Molly McDougal in the back end.
“(Florida) was the moment, particularly with the disappointment of the Tennessee result, the girls could have just been like, ‘We’re not as good as we hoped,’” Armstrong said. “That Florida game was a big game for us.”
Now, it’s on to the SEC Tournament in Pensacola, Fla., where No. 4 seed MSU will meet the fifth-seeded Crimson Tide in the quarterfinals on Tuesday night. A win would put the Bulldogs in the semifinals for the first time ever.
MSU checked in at No. 21 in the latest RPI rankings, in good shape to host a first-round NCAA Tournament game. The Bulldogs hosted and defeated New Mexico State in the first round last season, then lost a neutral-site game in the second round to Memphis. This year, they drew a program-record 9,034 fans to the MSU Soccer Field, including 1,523 against Ole Miss.
“Starkville is a really cool college town, and the community is really starting to embrace this soccer program,” Armstrong said. “It’s a great game day atmosphere. So hopefully the future is bright in terms of recruiting as well, because obviously you have to have good players to get good results.”
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Join the Discussion