The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Set to Battle No. 19 UCF and Little Rock
9/3/2015 | Soccer
MATCHUP: Ole Miss (3-0-1) vs. No. 19 UCF (3-1-0)
Date: Sept. 4, 2015, 7 p.m. CT
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Venue: Ole Miss Soccer Stadium
Capacity: 1,500
Television: SEC Network+
Richard Cross, play-by-play
Ian Banner, analyst
Live Stats:
Series: Ole Miss leads, 2-1
Last Game: UCF won, 4-0
Orlando, Fla.
Sept. 21, 2014
PROMOTIONS
- International Student Night
- Fans will receive a Bethany Bunker poster
MATCHUP: Ole Miss (3-0-1) vs. Little Rock (3-2-0)
Date: Sept. 6, 2015, 5 p.m. CT
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Venue: Ole Miss Soccer Stadium
Capacity: 1,500
Television: SEC Network+
Richard Cross, play-by-play
Ian Banner, analyst
Live Stats:
Series: Ole Miss leads 8-1
Last Game: Ole Miss won, 2-0
Oxford, Miss.
Sept. 22, 2013
PROMOTIONS
- Fans will receive an Olivia Harrison poster
KICKERS
- Ole Miss has allowed just one goal through the first four games of the season, the lowest amount surrendered since the start of 2011
- The Rebels are one of four SEC teams unbeaten through the first two weeks of the 2015 season
- CeCe Kizer and Addie Forbus have combined to score seven of the Rebels' 12 goals thus far.
- Ole Miss' 12 goals rank 16th nationally, while 0.237 goals against average ranks 17th
- Kizer ranks second in the SEC and 10th in the nation with four goals
- Ole Miss is undefeated through the first two weekends of the season for the fourth time in six years under head coach Matthew Mott
SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS
UCF is starting 2015 coming off of a great 2014 campaign, repeating as the American Athletic Conference's regular season champion last year. The Knights have a relatively new squad for this year with a total of 15 newcomers on the roster. However, the new faces have not slowed the Knights, as they are stacked with talent. Earlier this week, three players all earned player of the week honors from the AAC. These players included senior Ashley Spivey, sophomore Saga Fredriksson and Jessica Taylor. Spivey notably netted two game-winners against in-state foes for UCF (FIU and Miami). The Knights head into Oxford as a ranked opponent, marking the first ranked foe Ole Miss will face this year. UCF is currently sitting at No. 19 in the Top Drawer Soccer rankings with a 3-1-0 on the year and have not dropped a contest since its opening match against No. 8 Florida. As the two face off on Friday, it will also mark the second SEC opponent for the Knights in five games. Ole Miss leads the all-time series, 2-1, but UCF won last season's contest, 4-0. The Knights are coached by World Cup champion Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak who has led UCF since 2013.
A LOOK AT LITTLE ROCK
Little Rock heads to the Ole Miss Soccer Stadium with a team full of fresh faces. Twenty new team members make up over half of the roster for the Trojans. Many of these Little Rock newcomers are also freshmen, leaving a great opportunity for head coach Adrian Blewitt to lead his team to continue building on last year's success. Last season saw Little Rock win its first nine games of the season and go undefeated at home in non-conference play. LIttle Rock is currently 3-2 on the season after knocking off Central Arkansas 1-0 on Wednesday. The two foes have faced off nine times before, with Ole Miss holding a 8-1 record against the Trojans. The last time the Rebels and Trojans squared off, Ole Miss claimed a 3-0 victory as part of the team's record-breaking 2013 season.
UNDEFEATED REBS
For the fourth time in six seasons under head coach Matthew Mott, Ole Miss is unbeaten through the first two weekends of the season. Last weekend, the Rebels defeated Louisiana-Lafayette, 3-1, before cruising past Austin Peay, 5-0 to improve to 3-0-1. Ole Miss has allowed just one goal through the first four games of the season, the lowest amount surrendered since the start of the 2011 campaign. The Rebels didn't allow a goal in the first 257 minutes of the season before the Ragin' Cajuns got on the board in the second half. In Sunday's win over Austin Peay, Ole Miss limited the Lady Govs to just four shots throughout the whole match as Marnie Merritt and Madi Killeen combined for the shutout in goal.
KIZER ROLLING
Freshman CeCe Kizer continued the impressive start to her collegiate career by scoring three goals in the two games last weekend, scoring both game-winning goals. Against Austin Peay, Kizer scored two goals, becoming the first Ole Miss soccer freshman to have a multi-goal game since Olivia Harrison in 2012. Just four games into her career as a Rebel, Kizer leads Ole Miss with four goals in four games, ranking second in the SEC and 10th in the nation.
NEW GOALIES, NO PROBLEM
Losing Kelly McCormick to graduation, the Rebels entered 2015 needing to fill the shoes of the record-breaking goalkeeper. Enter redshirt freshman Marnie Merritt and redshirt sophomore Madi Killeen. With Merritt getting the starts and playing the majority of the minutes, the Ole Miss backline has pitched three shutouts through the first four games of the season. Ole Miss has allowed just one goal this season for a goals against average of 0.237, which ranks 17th in the nation. Merritt boasts her own 0.266 goals against average, a mark that sits third in the SEC and 29th out of goalkeepers across the country.
END OF THE HOMESTAND
The Rebels will wrap up their seven-game homestand next weekend. After facing UCF and Arkansas-Little Rock this weekend, Ole Miss will take the home pitch for conference play. The Rebels square off against Kentucky on Friday, September 11 at 6 p.m. followed by Louisville on Sunday at 12 p.m. Friday's game will be broadcast on SEC Network, while the match on Sunday can be seen on SEC Network+.
CONFERENCE FOES
The Rebels begin their journey in the SEC gauntlet beginning on September 11 when Kentucky travels to Oxford, Miss. to take the pitch at the Ole Miss Soccer Stadium. SEC play will continue the following weekend when the Rebels hit the road September 18 to face the University of Florida for the first away match in nearly a month. Both Kentucky and Florida received preseason first place votes in the Southeastern Conference.
