STARKVILLE — Mississippi State took just two games to earn a signature win for the 2025 season, taking down No. 10 Wake Forest 2-1 on Sunday. The win is a great resume builder for future tournament seeding, but that’s a thought for further down the line.
For now, the most important aspect of the win was that the Bulldogs put their new approach to the test against one of the strongest programs in the country and came away with confidence. That gauge of where the team is at is invaluable for the coaches and players as they prepare for a road trip into Big 12 territory this week, and getting a win will reinforce the confidence and belief in the setup as well.
“We know it’s an unbelievable program, very well-coached, and they have some really good players,” head coach Nick Zimmerman said. “For us, it was a great opportunity for us to see where we were at. We know we have been putting in the work, and it’s a credit to the group. Like I said, it’s young, it’s new, and to find a way to get a result like this and compete in the second half, it’s the first time this season we have had to do that, so this was really, really positive for us.”
Attacking dominance
It was well known coming into the season that the strength and depth of the Bulldog squad would be in the attack. The team returned top scorer Ally Perry, along with junior striker Zoe Main, senior Chelsea Wagner and transfer Kyra Taylor.
Taylor and Main started up front in a strike partnership, with Perry operating just behind as an attacking midfielder. She formed the top of a midfield diamond that included freshman Adia Symmonds and sophomore Kara Harris on either side and junior Alivia Buxton holding down the defensive midfield spot.
Hannah Jibril and Naila Schoefberger formed the center back partnership ahead of goalkeeper Sarah Wommack, and Kennedy Husbands and Tatum Borman began the game as the wing backs.
The setup is slightly different from the approach last season, adding an extra body going forward, and it has seen the Bulldogs back their ambition with goalscoring opportunities and control of possession in the two games so far this season.
This could be seen in the opening half hour as the visitors spent nearly the entire time chasing the ball. The base of possession for MSU was aided by their midfield numbers, and they were able to contain Wake Forest for much of the game while maintaining room in behind the Deacon defense for the forwards to run onto direct balls.
The Bulldogs didn’t find a clear shot until the 20th minute, but their control of possession and pressing meant that Wake Forest was never able to gain ground themselves with the ball, and the Bulldogs continued to win the ball back in dangerous positions. The team defends and attacks as one, and when opportunities arose, everyone had a sense of their role to play.
On the opening goal, the ball first moved out wide for Symmonds, who found Husbands running forward from defense to help stretch the Wake Forest defense. Husbands received the ball, and by this time, four Bulldogs were charging toward the box in anticipation of a cross. Although Husbands’ cross arrived behind the two forwards, it fell perfectly for Perry to control and find space to shoot. As this happened, Harris continued her run toward goal, the last to arrive in the box, and reached the ball just in time to head the rebound of Perry’s shot into the goal.
Thin back line
Of course, one extra body forward means one less body in defense.
The Bulldogs shifted from a three-back setup the last couple of years to a center-back pairing, with Jibril and Schoefberger playing wide in possession to assist in buildup. This puts a lot of pressure on the pair to be safe and secure on the ball as well as find the right pass, and the same goes for the midfielders checking back to receive the ball.
Along with the isolation, a high line of defense leaves plenty of room for opposition forwards to press and win the ball back, and any mistake leaves plenty of space to attack.
When Wake Forest scored, it was totally against the run of play. One misplaced pass back to the keeper from Harris sent Allie Flanagan through one-on-one to score with the first shot of the game for the visitors. That’s the risk of playing out the way the Bulldogs do, but it’s a risk that paid off for them on the other end.
It’s still early in the season and there are a lot of games left to play for MSU to adjust, but apart from a handful of shaky moments, the defense held its ground. The Deacons were held to just four shots on target all match. Their frustration in attack was evident, and the Bulldogs’ calm and control was a part of it. Shaky moments will happen, but learning to deal with them is part of the process.
“The way that we’re going to play, it’s part of it,” Zimmerman said. “It’s part of learning and growing. It felt like the first 30-35 minutes was exactly what we wanted, and then they started to step the lines a little bit higher, put us under a bit more pressure, and that’s awesome for us because now we got a chance to see how we can navigate that as other teams look to do that.”
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