STARKVILLE — Mississippi State soccer will continue its 2025 campaign on the road this week, traveling to face Big 12 programs Baylor and Oklahoma State. 

The Bulldogs are 2-0 after wins over Jacksonville State and then-No. 10 ranked Wake Forest, and are back in the rankings at No. 17 in the latest United Soccer Coaches poll. 

The 2-1 win over the Deacons on Sunday was an early signature win on the season, but there is still plenty for the Bulldogs to work on as they look to improve before beginning conference play next month. 

“It was good to play two games, that’s the most important thing,” head coach Nick Zimmerman said. “We watched the film, and there are some things we’ve got to continue to work on and grow. Two games in, I think we’d be naive to say that everybody thinks they’re there after two games, so we’ve got a long way to go, two really good opponents, both well coached, so I think it’ll be a great challenge for us and another good opportunity for us  to learn and grow.”

MSU’s Thursday opponent, Baylor, is 1-0-2, with draws against Texas A&M and Denver before beating Montana 2-0 on Sunday. Oklahoma State is 2-1-1 with wins against Mercer and Arkansas State, a loss to Oklahoma and a draw against Nebraska. The Cowgirls came into the season ranked No. 22 in the country. 

The Bulldogs beat Baylor 1-0 to begin the 2024 season, controlling much of the game but only breaking through with a strike from Ilana Izquierdo. 

The 2025 Bulldogs have a similar tactical approach to last year, pressing intensely and defending from the front to regain the ball in attacking areas of the pitch. The team was exposed a couple of times at the back on bad giveaways, but was able to restrict Wake Forest for the most part in a largely positive display. 

For Zimmerman, it wasn’t the end product the team will hope to have by the end of the season, but they’ve had a positive start to build off of and continue to improve as the season goes on. 

“The big thing is figuring out when teams start to change their tactics, how do we continue to adjust and putting the right players in the right places on the field, giving them options to solve,” Zimmerman said of the team’s goals for improvement after a good start. “We do a lot of training with cognitive problem solving because ultimately, they’re the ones out there playing. We’re going to continue to keep throwing them in spots in training where they’ve got to solve problems, solve different tactics, and it’s going to be a work in progress.”

The Bulldogs and Bruins will meet in Waco today at 7 p.m., and the game will be available to watch via stream on ESPN+.