Mississippi State soccer saw its season kickoff delayed by severe weather on Thursday.
A flurry of lightning and rain postponed the team’s 6:30 p.m. kickoff against UT Martin. Initially, the plan was to wait out the lightning, but as the storm continued, the field condition was further complicated by rain.
A plan to play the match with a delayed kickoff time was abandoned late in the evening.
“Huge thank you to everyone who came out tonight,” head coach Nick Zimmerman said in a statement on social media. “No one is more disappointed than our players and staff to have to cancel our home opener. Mother Nature had other plans. We look forward to seeing everyone next Thursday. Let’s pack the pitch.”
The Bulldogs are currently ranked No. 22 in the nation, led by Zimmerman in his first season as head coach. The team returns a handful of players from the SEC regular season title-winning team in 2024, notably Ally Perry, who was named to the Hermann Trophy watchlist on Thursday.
The award is given annually as a national Player of the Year honor by the Missouri Athletic Club and is the highest individual honor in Division I soccer. Perry is the third Bulldog to make the watchlist, and her predecessor as team captain, Macey Hodge, was a semifinalist for the award last season.
The Bulldogs will now begin the new campaign at home Thursday, Aug. 21, against Jacksonville State at 6:30 p.m. Coverage of the match will also stream on SEC Network+.
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