STARKVILLE — Mississippi State soccer is three wins away from destiny.
At 13-1, 7-0 in the Southeastern Conference, James Armstrong’s team is in the midst of an historic season.
The final home game against Kentucky on Thursday is the last chance for home fans to see the Bulldogs in the regular season and will be the first match to feature an MSU pep band to help mark the occasion.
The two most recent home games set records for first and second, respectively, in attendance in program history, and there is a decent chance the game on Thursday will join that list somewhere.
There is great anticipation for what comes next for the No. 3 ranked Bulldogs. The team boasts a top-4 RPI in NCAA Division I, which would guarantee a top seed in the tournament, but for now, there is business to attend to.
The Bulldogs have been able to stay unbeaten at home and in conference play for a reason, and the focus isn’t going to dim as the lights get brighter.
“It’s something that we as a coaching staff don’t worry about because we have humble players with great character,” Armstrong said of his team’s focus. “We’ve got great leadership in the locker room. Nobody thinks we’ve made it, we’ve got a clear mission of what we want to achieve this year and there’s still a lot of really good teams we’ve got to play.”
The Bulldogs thrashed Missouri 5-0 in their last home game before winning a fifth consecutive Magnolia Cup. It’s a matchup Armstrong’s teams have always done well in, despite the high intensity of the rivalry, and that consistency is reflected in the team over this season as a whole.
“Neither program has won it five times in a row, so credit to all the players and staff,” Armstrong said after the win. “They did an unbelievable job preparing for a good Ole Miss team. Everything you prepare for goes out the window in rivalry games. It was a bloodbath out there from the first second to the last second.”
Macey Hodge, one of the team’s leaders in midfield, will have to sit out the game against Kentucky because of yellow card accumulation. Her caution was one of five produced by the referee in the final 20 minutes of a tense match, with Ally Perry and Rylie Combs both making it into the book as well.
The physical nature of that game took a lot out of the Bulldogs, and Hodge’s absence against Kentucky will be felt in midfield, but the team’s calm demeanor in handling the target on their back is promising considering they’ll be playing without one of their leaders.
Last week, Armstrong stressed the importance of efficiency with time, resting, keeping training business as usual and focusing on the task at hand. It seems simple, but it’s worked out for them so far.
“You’ve got to block out the noise,” he said. “We try to keep everything in our inner circle, never getting too high or too low, and focusing on improving day in and day out. Come with your best effort and attitude, and if everyone does that we’ll be in a good spot. We’ve had a great season, take nothing away from that, but if we don’t take care of business in these next games, then what’s it all for?”
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