Soccer Begins Road Portion of SEC Slate
9/29/2011 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
Sept. 29, 2011
| Match #11 | Alabama (6-3-1, 1-1 SEC) at Mississippi State (3-5-2, 0-2 SEC) | |
| Date | Friday, Sept. 30 | 7 p.m. CT |
| Location | Starkville, Miss. | MSU Soccer Field (500) |
| Tickets | Free Admission |
| Television | None |
| Radio | None |
| Live Stats | GameTracker |
| Streaming Video | Maroon to the Max |
| Game Notes | Alabama Notes  | Opponent Notes |
| All-Time Series | Alabama Leads, 10-4-2 |
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama soccer team heads to the state of Mississippi for two Southeastern Conference matches this weekend. On Friday, the Crimson Tide will face the Bulldogs of Mississippi State in Starkville at The Mississippi State Soccer Stadium at 7 p.m. Then UA will head to Oxford on Sunday to face Mississippi at 1 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT
Alabama opened SEC play at home this past weekend, coming away with a 1-1 conference record. Alabama knocked off Vanderbilt on Friday night, for only the third time in the program's history, with a 2-0 victory. On Sunday, however, the Tide saw its four-game winning streak snapped by the Kentucky Wildcats in a 4-1 loss. Molly Atherton, Pia Rijsdijk and Theresa Diederich scored the goals on the weekend for Alabama.
WHO TO WATCH
Sophomore Kendall Khanna is putting together a solid 2011 campaign for the Crimson Tide. On Friday night, Khanna had an assist on the game clinching goal to Pia Rijsdijk, when she drove to the touch line to play the ball across the goal mouth for an open netter. Khanna is tied for first on the team in points with seven this season, and looks to add to that total this weekend in Mississippi.
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI STATE
The Bulldogs enter the weekend with a 3-5-2 record and a 0-2 mark in SEC play. Mississippi State lost at LSU on Friday, 5-1, and then were knocked off on Sunday by Arkansas, 1-0. The Bulldogs are averaging over 18 shots a game, and are led by junior midfielder Jasmine Simmons with five points on two goals and an assist. MSU has eight players with over 10 shots on the year. In goal, the Bulldogs are led by junior Skylar Rosson. Rosson has posted two shutouts with 46 saves and a 1.61 goals against average. MSU finished the 2010 season with an 8-12 record and a 1-10 SEC mark. The Bulldogs are led by Neil Macdonald, who is in his seventh season as the head coach.
SERIES HISTORY
Alabama leads the series 10-4-2 and won last season in Tuscaloosa, 2-0. Kendall Khanna and Brooke Rogers scored the two goals for the Crimson Tide. Alabama sports a three-match winning streak against MSU and is 5-2-1 in games played in Starkville. The last trip to the MSU campus, UA won, 1-0.
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI
The Rebels enter the weekend with a 4-5-1 record overall, and a 0-2 mark in SEC play. Mississippi lost in overtime at Arkansas, 2-1 on Friday night and then lost at LSU on Sunday, 3-2. UM are led by sophomore midfielder Rafaelle Souza with 19 points on seven goals and five assists. Alley Rinaldi has led the team in goal, posting two shutouts and a 1.31 goals against average in her nine matches. The Rebels finished 2010 with a 7-9-4 record and a 3-5-3 mark in SEC play. Matthew Mott is11-14-5 in his second year as head coach of the Rebels.
SERIES HISTORY
Mississippi leads the series 10-7 and sports a 7-2 advantage in Oxford. Alabama did snap a five-match losing streak against UM in a 2-0 win in Tuscaloosa last season. Brooke Rogers and Rosaly Petriello propelled the Tide to victory with goals in the shutout win. Alabama fell to Mississippi, 1-0, in its last trip to Oxford and has not won there since a 3-0 win in 1997.
SEC ROAD OPENERS
Alabama is 7-8-2 all-time in SEC road openers. Crimson Tide head coach Todd Bramble is unbeaten in league openers on the road, sporting a 2-0-1 mark. Alabama defeated Vanderbilt, 2-0, in his first season at the helm of the Tide program and then downed Mississippi State, 1-0, in 2009 and tied LSU, 0-0, last season.
AROUND THE SEC
Alabama leads the conference with 62 saves through 10 games, for an average of 6.2 per game. Justine Bernier is second overall with a 0.69 goals against average and is first in the conference in save percentage, saves, saves per game and shutouts.
STINGY DEFENSE
Despite giving up four goals in large part to being down to nine players against Kentucky on Sunday, the Alabama defense is posting some sold numbers. The Tide has allowed 10 goals in 10 games this season and has posted four shutouts. Alabama has allowed one goal or less on eight different occasions this season. Senior Justine Bernier sports a 0.69 goals against average.
VETERAN DEFENSE
Alabama is led by a veteran defense this season, sporting a backline that is comprised of three seniors and one junior. In goal, Justine Bernier is in her senior season as well. All five players have logged 750 or more minutes, with K.K. Duffy (920), Ashley Willis (895) and Veronika Wolfkeil (889) leading the team in minutes played.
SCORING FROM NEW PLACES
In the last three wins, three different players have recorded their first career goals for Alabama. In the 1-0 win against UAB, junior Ashley Willis found the net for the first time in her career, while in the win against Morehead State, newcomer Pia Rijsdijk tallied the game-winner. In the blanking of Vanderbilt on Friday, sophomore Molly Atherton bended her way to the scoresheet, scoring the game-winner on a brilliant corner kick. In the loss against Kentucky, Theresa Diederich scored her third goal on the season. The redshirt freshman had not scored until this season. In 2011, six different players have recorded their first career goal.
NEXT WEEK
Alabama will continue to stay on the road as it will head to South Carolina and Florida to face the best the conference has to offer. The Tide will face the Gamecocks on Friday, Oct. 7, with a 7 p.m. ET, kickoff before heading to Gainesville to play Florida on Oct. 9. The match against the Gators will air at 3 p.m. ET, on ESPNU.
