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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Soccer Closes Out Non-Conference Slate On The Road
9/18/2008 | Soccer
OXFORD, Miss. The Ole Miss soccer team travels to Middle Tennessee on Friday for its final non-league contest before entering Southeastern Conference play at home next weekend. Kickoff for Friday's match is 6:30 p.m. CT from Blue Raider Field in Murfreesboro, Tenn.
With a 2-3-2 record entering the weekend, the Rebels are aiming to get to .500 before diving into the rigorous SEC slate.
"One of our goals is to advance to the NCAA Tournament," said Ole Miss head coach Steve Holeman. "In order to do that, we have to maintain at least a .500 record for the season. The SEC has become such a tough conference that I believe you can have a .500 record in league play and still be a strong candidate for postseason play, so it's very important for us to come up with a good result on Friday."
Middle Tennessee has struggled to a 1-4-2 record so far, with a lone win over Tulsa. Three of the Blue Raiders' four losses have been by just one goal, though, including a 2-1 defeat to a one-loss Vanderbilt club. Middle has been out-scored 11-6 in its seven matches, and speedy Welsh freshman Shan Jones has tallied four of the team's six goals.
"Middle Tennessee has a chance to host an SEC team on a Friday night, and I think they will be at their best," Holeman said. "We will also need to bring our best. I think our girls are motivated and ready. Middle Tennessee will see a different team than we had the last time we played at a mid-major type at Western Kentucky (Rebels lost 2-1 in double-overtime)."
Ole Miss is coming off a 2-1 victory over Oklahoma this past Sunday in which senior Jennifer Hance netted a pair of goals in the first three minutes of the second half. The Rebels nearly swept a pair of Big 12 foes over the weekend, but lost a heartbreaker 3-2 at the hands of Colorado despite holding a 2-0 lead with less than 16 minutes remaining in regulation Friday night.
Hance scored three goals against the Big 12 competition and paces the Rebels with five for the season. She also has moved into ninth place on the school's all-time list with 22 career goals, needing one more to tie Sarah Wong (1997-2000) for eighth. Junior Hannah Weatherly is second on the squad with three goals.
The injury bug has not been kind to Ole Miss so far this season, with six players having missed at least one game due to injury. Lily Crabtree is out for the season with a torn ACL, but Erin Downing is expected back this weekend after missing three matches and Austin Brown should return soon as well.
The Rebels will be facing the Blue Raiders for the fourth time in series history. Ole Miss has won all three previous matchups by a combined score of 17-1. Ole Miss also boasts a 6-1 all-time record versus Sun Belt Conference opponents.
League play begins next Friday with a 6 p.m. kickoff against Arkansas, two hours prior to the start of the presidential debate being held just blocks away at the Gertrude Ford Center on campus. Ole Miss will then square off with LSU at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
