Soccer Heads to South Carolina to Face #9 Gamecocks

Friday, October 30

Columbia, S.C.

6:00 PM

Mississippi State

#9 South Carolina

Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics

Soccer Heads to South Carolina to Face #9 Gamecocks

October 29, 2020 | Soccer

Live Stats SEC Network+Game Notes

The Bulldogs look to find a win against their cross-divisional opponent on Friday night.

By: Madelon Allen, Assistant Coordinator/Communications

STARKVILLE – The Mississippi State soccer program heads east to take on No. 9 South Carolina on Friday night in Columbia, with kick set for 6 p.m. at Stone Stadium.

MSU (2-1-3) looks to find a win against the second cross-divisional opponent of the season in the Gamecocks (5-1-0) under the Friday night lights. The Bulldogs tied with Missouri in the last match, finishing in double-overtime at 1-1.

The last time the Gamecocks and Bulldogs faced off, it was an overtime thriller in Starkville, with Mississippi State coming away with the 2-1 win in September of 2018. With a record-breaking crowd on hand, then-freshman Zakirah McGillivary helped the Bulldogs knock off No. 13/6 South Carolina. After receiving a short pass from Brooke McKee, she shot from 25 yards out and found the upper-left corner of the net. In regulation, both teams had scored on penalty kicks to tie it up.

Match Information

Opponent: #9 South Carolina
Location: Columbia, South Carolina
Time: Friday, Oct. 30, 6 p.m.
Broadcast: SEC Network+ (pxp – Brad Mueller, analyst – Nancy Goffi)

Series History

Overall: 5-11-3
At MSU: 3-4-2
At USC: 2-7-1
Neutral: 0-0-0
Last Meeting: Sept. 20, 2018 (MSU 2, USC 1, OT)

Quick Touches

The No. 9-ranked Gamecocks will be the third opponent the Bulldogs have played that has been ranked by United Soccer Coaches this season (No. 15 Alabama, No. 9 Texas A&M).
This will be head coach James Armstrong's first match against South Carolina at the helm of the Bulldogs.
MSU had five different starting lineups through the first five matches but stuck with the fifth one in their match against Mizzou on Oct. 24.
State has gone into double-overtime three times this season, with all three matches ending in a 1-1 draw. MSU is 11-11-17 in double-overtime matches.
Onyi Echegini scored her second goal of the season against the Missouri Tigers, heading it into the back of the net off a bullseye cross from KK Pavatt to tie it up.
Goalkeeper Hannah Pimentel saw her first career minutes in the net against Mizzou after Maddy Anderson briefly left the pitch.

Scouting South Carolina

The Gamecocks are on a five-match winning streak after starting the season with a loss on the road at Georgia. They are outscoring their opponents by seven goals and have had 14 more corner kicks. The majority of their goals have come in the second half. Freshman forward Catherine Berry leads South Carolina in goals with three, points with seven, and shots with 15. The Gamecocks lead the Southeastern Conference in points, goals, and assists, as well as assists per game. Their netminder, Heather Hinz, has a 4-0-0 record so far this season, sharing time with Taylor Fox. Head coach Shelley Smith is in her 20^th season in Columbia, finding her 300^th career win against Florida where the Gamecocks dominated the Gators, 4-2. The Gamecocks are riding at the top of the divisional standings for the SEC West, with 12 points as a team.

For more information on the Bulldog soccer program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching for "HailStateSOC."