Ole Miss Routs Mississippi State With Three Second-Half Goals

Nov. 1, 2002

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Ole Miss blew open a tight soccer match late, netting three second-half goals in a 4-1 route at Mississippi State Friday. The win assures the Rebels (13-3-2, 5-3-1) at least a top-four overall finish in the SEC for only the second time in school history.

State (5-13-1, 2-6-1 SEC) wasted no time in the grudge match, taking a 1-0 lead on the second-fastest goal in school history. On MSU's Senior Day, fourth-year Bulldog Jessica Kauffman set up Amber Rose in front for a bullet to the upper back of the net 1:32 into the match.

The Rebels answered in the eighth minute with Amy Sample connecting for the second straight game. Karen Hall found Sample 12 yards in front, and the junior from Crestwood, Ky., sent the ball to the left side of the goal for her third score of the year.

Possession switched back and forth over the first 45 minutes, and the Dogs entered halftime with an 8-4 shot edge. However, the Rebels took control after the break and outshot State 12-7 the rest of the way.

"We came out flat and definitely did not play our best in the first half," said UM head coach Steve Holeman. "We made adjustments at halftime and came back with a lot more focus. We played Ole Miss soccer in the second half and the result is a 4-1 victory over a big rival."

Ole Miss took its first lead at 71:55, when Kristal Menard booted a ball into an empty net after the MSU keeper deflected a Lyndsey Williams shot. It was Menard's second goal of the season.

Kelly Renie and Leigh Barrow then finished off the Bulldogs with a pair of late scores. Off a Sample cross, Renie headed in her 18th goal of the year in the 85th minute. Four minutes later, Barrow ended the afternoon with a rip over the keeper from the right wing. It was the first career goal for the sophomore from Guntersville, Ala.

The victory secures the Rebels either the No. 3 or 4 seed, depending on the result of Friday's Georgia/Tennessee game, in next week's Southeastern Conference Championship at Ole Miss Soccer Stadium in Oxford. UM is making its sixth straight SEC Tournament appearance - the longest streak of any Western Division team.

Ole Miss, who is ranked 28th in the nation in the latest NSCAA poll, wraps up the regular season Sunday in Oxford with a non-conference faceoff against Memphis (8-9-1) at 1 p.m. CST. The Rebels will be celebrating Senior Day and will honor Kristin Chapman and Anna Sanders in pre-game ceremonies.

RebelsCalendar

Next Event

Team Stats

Amy Sample

Kristal Menard

Kelly Renie

Leigh Barrow

The University of Mississippi Athletics