******BTHO Mississippi State******

2,892 Views | 19 Replies | Last: 4 yr ago by Here4goodSoccer
CDub06
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AG
Texas A&M opens conference play on the road against Mississippi State at 7PM on Thursday.

This begins Texas A&M's 8th season in the SEC and Mississippi State's 25th. Despite that disparity, Texas A&M still owns 12 more SEC wins than Mississippi State does all-time (55-43). Texas A&M is also the only SEC team that Mississippi State hasn't defeated. The Aggies are 7-0 all-time against the Bulldogs.

And in one more impressive feat of awfulness: MSU is 0-2 all-time in SEC Tournament play. Yes, that means Mississippi State has only played in the conference tournament twice in history. While the Bulldogs missed last season's conference tournament with a 2-6-2 conference record, they somehow limped into their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance... where they were promptly booted by Lipscomb.

The Bulldogs are 5-3 on the season. Their wins came over teams that you probably couldn't locate on a map: Alabama A&M (4-0), Eastern Washington (1-0), Idaho (2-1), UT Martin (3-0), and South Alabama (1-0). Losses came against more notable teams such as BYU (1-2), Memphis (0-4), and Boston College (0-2). If we're comparing common games, Mississippi State does get the edge with the 1-2 result vs. BYU.

Overall, the Bulldogs have outscored opponents 12-9. 5 of those goals have come from #10 Macayla Waldner - that includes 3 gamewinners. Gabby English has seen the most minutes in goal, allowing 7 goals and registering 21 saves through 559 (of 720) minutes of play. Mississippi State has 2 shutouts on the season.
mullokmotx
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They had 2 wins in SEC play last year but 1 of those was against USC at home which is what got them into the NCAA tournament.

On Coach G's Twiiter there is a link to a very good podcast interview with Shantel for 6ydbox.com.
Giggem
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I can find Idaho and the southern half of Alabama on a map. Where's my prize?
redd38
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Alston at center back
redd38
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Oof, should have been a goal there
Here4goodSoccer
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I'd like to see Rheagan Smith and Ally Watt pair up this game. I think they could run circles around this defense.
mullokmotx
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Had 2 great scoring chances. Our inability to connect passes and control the ball is going to cost us. Almost a costly giveaway by one of our defenders. Seems like we never end up with the ball after a long kick by Shantel. Taylor came off with 20 minutes to go. Hit at least 3 balls over the goal.
mullokag
Rudyjax
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How was that not a penalty in that scrum. Too many bodies to see anything?
Hand Of God
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Jimena has given A&M a 1-0 lead.
redd38
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My box score is significantly ahead of my stream. Getting spoilers
Hand Of God
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Watt doubles it. 2-0.
redd38
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Aggies finding their groove now
redd38
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I know we're up a bunch, but that opportunity for Watt there has to be made if she wants any shot at being a Hermann finalist
Hand Of God
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Taylor Ziemer made it 3-0.
mullokmotx
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We were much more aggressive in the offensive end the second half. Did the best job passing and controlling the ball in that half than I think we have done all year. Putting Taylor at forward seemed to really help and it's great that we can move her to where she is most needed. Jimena should have had 3 or 4 assists. Grace and Taylor played the entire second half and I thought we should have substituted for them. Karlina looked like she had an icepack on her left knee after she came out; I hope that's just a precaution.
mullokag
coloradoag69
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Our first goal by Jimena was a real beauty. There couldn't have been any margin of error on that kick from her left side with her left foot given that it fit just inside the far post while curving the "wrong" way. Wow. What a shot!
Hand Of God
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It was most likely an attempted cross that accidentally found the net.
HiddenAg2
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Encouraging win for A&M no doubt. I really didn't expect that the way this team had been playing in the middle. But there was some good connections and a lot of chances in front of goal that should have been finished. A&M won 3-0 but should have scored at least 7 goals. Lopez scored on a cross and Watt did have a nice finish on a 1v1, although she missed another one later. Taylor was more forward than we've seen in a while and it paid off with a goal off a wayward shot by Lopez, although she also missed a couple of point blank shots in the front of goal as well. Defense was pretty solid except for a few bad giveaways (as usual) that could have been costly.

It was good to see A&M dominate a game against a decent opponent on the road. Hopefully this can carry over to the rest of the season. They needed some confidence for sure.
hsvag
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G's teams historically, and perhaps this team in particular, kicks a lot of shots (well) over the crossbar instead of putting them on frame. Pace is chosen over location. I have often wondered if this has been recognized by the coaching staff and is emphasized in practice, perhaps with some negative reinforcement for consistent high shots. Yes, there are fewer obstructions up high in the goal mouth, but the old axiom still applies, you can't score if it isn't on frame.
mullokmotx
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The high shots are frustrating, but the other teams hit a lot of high shots also. Grace took a hard shot from pretty far out last night that was caught by the keeper and I was okay with that because some times the keeper doesn't catch it, like the Stanford keeper couldn't catch a ball in the College Cup last year. I was reading about the Pepperdine-UCLA game last night and Pepperdine scored their second goal on a ball that went through the UCLA keeper's hands.
mullokag
Here4goodSoccer
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I remember quite a few goals scored last year were from beyond the 18. It doesn't hurt they're taking those shots but probably need to work on the basics in practice to make sure they're getting good contact with the ball with the right body position. It would be nice to see some more goals from 20-25 yards because I feel teams are giving us that space right now
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