The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Bowling Green
Soccer Set for NCAA First Round Match with Bowling Green
4/25/2021 | Soccer
Rebels and Falcons Kick Off at 5 p.m. CT
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No. 24 OLE MISS (10-5-0, 4-4-0) vs. BOWLING GREENย (6-1-0,ย 5-1-0) Tuesday, Aprilย 27 โข 5 p.m. CT โข Wilmington, N.C. UNCW Soccer Stadium  |
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| WATCH โข LIVE STATS โข TICKETS โขย DIGITAL PROGRAM (PDF) OLE MISS NOTES (PDF)ย โข BGSU NOTES (PDF)ย โข SEC NOTES (PDF) |
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QUICK KICKS
โข Ole Miss concluded its spring season with a perfect 6-0 record, earningย a spot in the 2020ย Women's Soccer Championship held in North Carolina.
โข Tuesday's match will be the first-ever meeting between Ole Miss and Bowling Green.
โข It marks the third time in the last four seasons that Ole Miss has punched its ticket to the "Big Dance" and the fifth time in the Mott era. The Rebels last appeared in the NCAA Tournament back in 2018, when they defeated Clemson 2-1 on the road to advance to the second round.
โข During the 2020-21 season, four Rebels garnered SEC Player of the Week plaudits. Madisyn Pezzino was named offensive player of the week back on November 2, while Haleigh Stackpole, Ramsey Davis and Price Loposer claimed the awards during the spring campaign. The four conference honors are the most in a single season in program history.
โข Seven different Rebels have combined to score 14 goals this spring. Ramsey Davis, Channing Foster, Saydie Holland, Jenna Kemp, Mo O'Connor, Molly Martin and Haleigh Stackpole have all found the back of the net in 2021.
โข Ahead of the spring season, Channing Foster and Ashley Orkus were among the 56 athletes named to the watchlist for the 2020-21 MAC Hermann Trophy, the most prestigious individual award in college soccer.
โข With the 32nd pick in the 2021 NWSL Draft, the Chicago Red Stars selected Channing Foster. The Senior Forward is returning to Ole Miss for the spring season and plans to play in the Fall of 2021 as well.
โข In November, the SEC released its 2020 postseason awards, with Ole Miss keeper Ashley Orkus being named the unanimous choice for Goalkeeper of the Year. Orkus was also a First Team All-SEC honoree.
โข Channing Foster joined Orkus on the first team, becoming just the second Rebel ever to be named All-SEC four times in a career.
REBELS IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Rebels are taking part in their ninth ever NCAA Tournament, having registered a record of 4-7-2. Ole Miss is 4-4 in first round matchups in the tournament. Head coach Matt Mott has guided the Rebels to five NCAA appearances, including a magic Sweet 16 run in 2015 where the Rebels defeated Murray State 1-0 and took down No. 7 national seed Clemson on penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie through two overtimes. Qualifying for the Soccer Championship has become a yearly goal for Ole Miss, who is making its fifth appearance in the tournament in the last eight seasons.ย
CAROLINA IS CALLING
Following an undefeated spring season, Ole Miss soccer has earned an at-large bid for the 2020ย NCAA Women's Soccer Championship held in North Carolina. The Rebels will take on Bowling Green in the first round Tuesday, April 27 at 5 p.m. CT in Wilmington. It marks the third time in the last four seasons that Ole Miss has punched its ticket to the "Big Dance" and the fifth time in the Mott era. The Rebels last appeared in the NCAA Tournament back in 2018, when they defeated Clemson 2-1 on the road to advance to the second round. The Rebels and Falcons have never met on the pitch. Bowling Green clinched an automatic bid this spring after winning the MAC Championship and posting a 6-1 record. Ole Miss, on the other hand, has been perfect this spring, winning all six matches to bring its overall record up to 10-5. Clicking on all cylinders, the Rebels are ready to make a run in Wilmington.
SCOUTING BOWLING GREEN
Bowling Green University women's soccer program is led by first-year head coach Jimmy Walker. Walker came to the Falcon program after two highly successful seasons at the University of Findlay, where he guided the Oilers to an overall record of 25-7-4 and the program's first-ever trip to the NCAA Division II National Tournament. BGSU has won both the MAC regular-season and tournament titles in each of its last three seasons and is looking to break through and pick up a first round victory in the NCAA Tournament.
This year, the Falcons fall season was postponed along with all fall sports in the Mid-American Conference. Bowling Green played and won three exhibitions before kicking off its spring season on March 4, with a 3-0 win over Akron. It went on to post a 6-1 record in the spring and win the MAC Championship, giving Bowling Green an automatic bid in the 2020ย Women's Soccer Championship.
The Falcons scored 17 goals in just seven games this spring. Redshirt junior Madi Wolfbauer leads the offensive attack, finding the back of the net five times, including two braces. Kennedy White is another scoring threat for Bowling Green. The sophomore forward has punched in four scores. Further, 10 different Falcons have assisted on a goal this season.
Redshirt sophomore Lil Berg has been impressive in goal for Bowling Green, surrendering only three goals throughout the seven spring games. Her backline has helped keep the pressure off, as Berg has only needed to make 11 saves on 39 shots faced to record five clean sheets.
SERIES HISTORY
The Rebels and Falcons have never met on the pitch. Tuesday's opening round match of the 2020ย Soccer Championship will be the first between the two programs. It will also mark the second time the Rebels have ever played a MAC opponent (defeated Kent State 1-0 on September 5, 2005). Ole Miss is 4-7-2 in NCAA Tournament games, while Bowling Green is searching for its first win in the national tournament.
BEAST MODE
After netting her third collegiate goal in Ole Miss soccer's 3-0 victory over South Alabama, forward Ramsey Davis garnered SEC Freshman of the Week honors. Davis, who scored for the Rebels in the 84th minute, claimed the first SEC weekly honor of her young career. With under 10 minutes to play, the Rebels were still battling to put one more on the board. Davis flanked left as Haleigh Stackpole and Madisyn Pezzino worked the ball inside the box. After Pezzino was unable to make clean contact on her shot attempt, Davis swooped in to clean things up and launch the ball into the upper 90, putting the final nail in to coffin. The Tulsa, Oklahoma, native has played a key role in the Rebels' success this spring, helping the team rattle off an impressive 6-0 record.
THE PRICE IS RIGHT
Following a stout defensive performance in the clean sheet victory over Arkansas State, freshman defender Price Loposer has been named SEC Defensive Player of the Week, the first SEC weekly honor of her career. The freshman shut down the Sun Belt's second-leading scorer in Sarah Sodoma and helped keep the Red Wolves off the board, holding them to four shots the entire game. The Madison, Mississippi, native also eliminated the only real threat in the 31st minute as she chased down one of the Red Wolves' attackers on a breakaway and made a clutch tackle inside the box. Starting each of her last 11 matches, Loposer has been a key addition to the Rebel backline this season. She is averaging over 82 minutes per game. Ole Miss is 9-2 with Loposer in the starting XI, including six straight wins this spring.
LANDSHARK DEFENSE
At Ole Miss, Landshark is a term that was first adopted by the Rebel football team's defensive unit. As part of that identity, defensive players celebrate big plays by putting a hand to their forehead in the shape of a shark fin. This spring, a different football team on campus has adopted the Landshark defensive mindset. The Rebels have yet to allow more than 10 shots in a game, including holding Samford to five shots, Georgia Southern to two shots and Arkansas State to four shots in clean sheet victories.
LETHAL WEAPONS
After a bit of a scoring slump in the fall, the Rebels have been fortunate to watch the ball find the back of the net 14 times in six spring matches. Even more impressive is seven different individuals have notched a goal this spring, showcasing the offensive weapons available to Ole Miss. There is no shortage of talent in the attacking third as Ramsey Davis, Channing Foster, Saydie Holland, Jenna Kemp, Molly Martin, Mo O'Connor and Haleigh Stackpole have all scored for the Rebels in 2021.
WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS
During the month of March, Ole Miss had a flurry of offense, scoring three goals in each match. Against Memphis, the Rebels scored three times in a span of 11 minutes in the second half, with two goals coming from Haleigh Stackpole off both her left and right feet (47' and 52'). Saydie Holland also cleaned up a shot in the 58th minute, sending it into the back of the net. Five days later against Georgia, the Rebels scored three times in 10 minutes in the first half. Jenna Kemp recorded her first collegiate goal in the 22nd minute, followed by a Mo O'Connor goal six minutes later. Ramsey Davis capped off the scoring attack with a banger in the 32nd minute.
To close out the month, the Rebels put up 34 shots and scored three times against Georgia Southern. Two of those goals came within 57 seconds of each other. In the 16th minute, O'Connor slipped a pass to Channing Foster, who struck the ball far post past the Georgia Southern keeper from the left edge of the six-yard box. Fifty-seven seconds later, Molly Martin punched in a goal after Stackpole poked it towards her on a long throw-in. Jenna Kemp scored the final goal of the afternoon, sending home a cross from Stackpole with her head 33 seconds into the second half.
DERBY DUB
Haleigh Stackpole's brace and a flurry of offense to start the second half helped the Rebels dominate Memphis, 3-1, in the 23rd iteration of the derby between the two sides. Ole Miss came out of the half with a chip on its shoulder after the Tigers scored a last-second goal with a just a couple of tenths of a second left on the clock. Stackpole scored twice in the first eight minutes of the half as the Rebels pressed the Memphis back line and took the lead. Saydie Holland added the dagger in the 58th minute to give Ole Miss a two goal advantage. Orkus locked down the goal making five saves in the match. With the victory, the Rebels earned their first win in the rivalry in three years.
AND WITH THE 32ND PICKโฆ
For the second time in three years, an Ole Miss Rebel heard her name called during the National Women's Soccer League College Draft, with senior Channing Foster being selected with the 32nd overall pick by the Chicago Red Stars. Despite the opportunity to enter the professional ranks, Foster intends to return to Ole Miss for a fifth season of eligibility in the fall of 2021 and will suit up for the Rebels this spring. The Murray, Kentucky, native is a familiar face to the Red Stars organization, having played for the club's Women's Premier Soccer League affiliate, helping lead the Chicago Red Stars Reserves to a WPSL Central Region Championship. The Reds Stars have also been on the wrong end of the senior's lethal left foot, with Foster scoring a stoppage time winner for the U-23 USWNT over Chicago in the 2019 Thorns Spring Invitational.
BEST OF THE BEST
Ole Miss' Channing Foster and Ashley Orkus are among 56 athletes have been named to the 2020-21 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. The MAC Hermann Trophy is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer and is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female players of the year. The duo become the first Rebels to be named to the coveted watch list since CeCe Kizer in 2018. Ole Miss is one of six SEC schools with at least one player named to the watch list and one of three with multiple honorees, joining Arkansas and Texas A&M.
MOTT BOLSTERS DEFENSE WITH TRANSFER SYDNEY ASH
Matt Mott went out and added another key defender in Virginia Tech transfer Sydney Ash this January. A product of Riverside High School and FC Virginia DA, Ash brings two years of collegiate experience with her. Ash appeared in five matches for Virginia Tech as a freshman in 2019, playing a total of 134 minutes before her rookie campaign was cut short due to injury. She also missed the first four matches of the 2020 season before ultimately making eight appearances with seven starts on the back line. The sophomore will be eligible to compete for Ole Miss during the fall 2021 season.
SOCCER INKS NINE TO CLASS OF 2021
The Rebel coaching staff scoured the entirety of the south to bring in some of the nation's top talent, plucking the seven soon-to-be rookies from six different states. Adding to an Ole Miss roster that features standout performers from all around the country, Mott and his staff dipped into the talent pool in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina and Tennessee to continue to build the roster's depth.
Mott signed defender Kaitlin Maynard, a pair of midfielders in Ellie McIntyre and Lauren Montgomery and a trio of forwards, Amber Fortenberry, Maddie Bishop and Whitaker Buchanan. He also went out and added Canadian goalkeeper Alyssa Zalac to the signing class in late January and defender Lily Logan in April.
Rounding out the 2021 class is Shea O'Malley from Cary, North Carolina. The defender was ranked as the No. 25 recruit in the nation by TopDrawerSoccer and was called up to the United States U17 Women's National Team. O'Malley graduated high school early and is on campus training with the Rebels. She isn't eligible to play during the spring season but will be on the pitch in the fall.
IMMEDIATE IMPACT
A trio of freshmen made an immediate impact on the pitch for the Rebels in the fall. Defenders Lucy Green and Price Loposer were thrown into the mix along with forward Ramsey Davis. The freshmen trio appeared in a combined 24 matches and logged 1,546 minutes. Green saw action in all nine games, starting seven of them. The Meridian, Mississippi, native also helped set up the game-tying goal in the 2-1 victory at No. 13 Vanderbilt. Loposer is another Mississippi product who came up big for the Rebels, starting the final five contests. Davis rounds out the group of star-studded freshmen. She played in all nine matches in the fall, earning five starts. Davis also scored her first collegiate goal at No. 13 Vanderbilt, tying the match in the 86th minute.
GAS IN THE TANKย
Over her first three seasons as a Rebel, junior Haleigh Stackpole has proven to have deep reserves when it comes to energy. The Fort Bragg, North Carolina, native has been a fixture in the Ole Miss lineup ever since stepping foot on campus, starting all 51 matches of her collegiate career. Even more impressive, the box-to-box midfielder has hardly ever come off the field despite easily pacing the Rebels in distance ran every match, typically 9-10 miles. After ranking second on the team as a freshman at just over 84 minutes per match, Stackpole was subbed for just three total minutes in 2019, logging 1,899 minutes over 20 matches, and was on the pitch for the entirety of every game during the shortened fall season.
SHOW-STOPPING SHOT STOPPER
In November, Ole Miss junior Ashley Orkus was named the SEC Goalkeeper of the Year, receiving all 13 possible votes for a unanimous selection. Additionally, the Vestavia Hills, Alabama, native was bestowed with First Team All-SEC honors, the first all-conference nod of her career. She becomes just the second Rebel keeper to ever be named all-conference and the first First Team All-SEC honoree to play between the posts at Ole Miss. Orkus finished the fall regular season ranked second in the SEC in saves with 49 and save percentage at .817. In addition to her outstanding play on the defensive side, the Rebel keeper also contributed to the offense with three assists, tied for fourth most in the league and 18th in the nation.
FOUR-PEAT'S SAKE
For the fourth time in her career, Channing Foster has been bestowed with All-SEC honors, earning first team all-conference recognition for the second-consecutive season. Foster becomes just the second player in program-history to receive all-league laurels for a fourth time, joining Rebel great Danielle Johnson. Foster, the SEC's active leading goal scorer, ranked tied for sixth in the league during the regular season with three goals. The Murray, Kentucky, native saved her scoring for big moments, with all three of her goals going down as game-winners. The prolific senior's 33 career goals are the sixth most in school-history, putting Foster 15 goals behind two-time All-American CeCe Kizer's program-record.
WE OVER ME
Every year, the members of the Ole Miss soccer senior class come together to create a motto for that season's team. This year, the Rebels are rallying behind the "We Over Me" mindset, the idea that no single person is bigger than the team and that the entire group of 25 must work together in order to accomplish the team's goals. A specially designed "We Over Me" logo has been created and features in various areas such as warm up gear and the Ole Miss Soccer Stadium videoboard.
STRONGER TOGETHER
In early September, Ole Miss and 12 other institutions throughout the state of Mississippi announced the launching of the "Stronger Together" initiative to unite the state's athletics programs and communities in support of togetherness, diversity and equality.
During the 2020-21 academic year, college and university athletics programs in Mississippi will incorporate a special logo on their uniforms, equipment, warm-up gear or bags. The logo will serve as a visual representation of the state's schools coming together and will feature school-specific branding with the words "Stronger Together" inside the outline of Mississippi.
The campaign was created for the state's colleges and universities to come together, listen, learn and support student-athletes through their challenges, stresses and pressures related to events around the country. As part of the initiative, the schools will unite in their efforts to promote social justice and racial equality through advocacy, awareness and education.
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOKS
With three more goals during the shortened 2020 fall season and two in the spring, Channing Foster continued her ascent into the Rebel record books. After cracking the top-10 on Ole Miss' all-time scoring list in 2019, Foster moved into sixth place with 35 career goals, passing Rebel legends Jennifer Soileau, Regan Scanlon and Addie Forbus. With more soccer to play this spring and the opportunity to return for a fifth season next fall, Foster is 13 goals behind former teammate CeCe Kizer as the most prolific Rebel in history.
KIZER CAPTURES NWSL CHALLENGE CUP
In her second professional season, Ole Miss alum CeCe Kizer helped the Houston Dash collect some hardware this summer as the Houston Dash claimed the NWSL Challenge Cup. Kizer, the 13th overall selection in the 2019 NWSL Draft, played a pivotal role in the Dash' win over the Chicago Red Stars in the championship match, coming on early as a sub and playing the final 61 minutes of action. After the NWSL season and a loan spell with Norwegian Toppserien club Kolbotn IL, Kizer was selected by the upstart Racing Louisville FC in the 2020 NWSL Expansion Draft, joining the likes of USWNT standouts Tobin Heath and Christen Press.
FOLLOW THE REBS!
Fans can keep up with all the goings on around the Ole Miss soccer program by following the Rebels on the team's various social media platforms. You can find the Rebs on Twitter at @OleMissSoccer, on Instagram at
@OfficialOleMissSoccer or on Facebook by search "Ole Miss Soccer".
