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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Georgia
Soccer Set for Road Match Thursday Night in Athens
10/19/2022 | Soccer
Rebels Take On Georgia at 6 p.m. CT
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OLE MISS (9-4-2, 3-4-0 SEC) vs. Georgia (9-5-1, 3-3-1 SEC) Thursday, Oct. 20 • 6 p.m. CT • Athens, Ga. Turner Soccer Complex  |
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| WATCH • LIVE STATS OLE MISS NOTES (PDF) • GEORGIA NOTES (PDF) • SEC NOTES (PDF) |
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QUICK KICKS
• Ole Miss soccer dropped a close one to in-state rival Mississippi State last Thursday. The Rebels fell under .500 in conference play and have lost four in a row.
• The Rebels travel to Athens, Georgia Thursday night for a matchup with the Bulldogs. Ole Miss has won the last two meetings between the teams, including a win over then-ranked No. 14 Georgia in 2020.
• The all-time series between the Rebels and the Bulldogs is tied at 11-11-3. Ole Miss' last win in Athens came on 10/6/2013. They are 4-6 all-time when playing in Athens.
• Taylor Radecki's eight assists are a new career, single-season high and has her tied for 11th in the nation. Radecki's 0.53 assists per game is top-20 in the nation.
• Mo O'Connor scored her sixth goal of the season and her second in SEC play on a penalty kick against Texas A&M. O'Connor is top-5 in the SEC in goals.
• Senior Ashley Orkus' eight shutouts are tied for third-most in the SEC and tied for 12th in the nation.
• Orkus holds the record for most saves in a career by a Rebel goalkeeper and is the first to break the 300 saves mark. She sits second in keeper wins at 41 and needs two more to take over the top spot.
• The Rebels have scored 10 of their 27 goals in the first 20 minutes of the game this season.
SCOUTING GEORGIA
The Bulldogs are coming off a 2-0 win over Missouri last Thursday to move to 9-5-1 on the season and 3-3-1 in SEC play. The victory snapped a three-game winless streak for Georgia and was their first win since September 25 when they beat Florida 3-0.
Freshman goalkeeper Jordan Brown was named SEC Freshman of the Week this week following her first career star. The Las Vegas native played the full 90 minutes in goal against the Tigers and earned her first career shutout with two saves in the win. Brown became the first freshman goalkeeper to post a shutout in their first start since 2006.
Graduate forward Dani Murguia leads the Bulldog attack with five goals and one assist on the season. Her latest score came on a penalty kick in the 78th minute against Missouri to make it 2-0. Murguia is second all-time in career assists in Georgia program history with 24 in her time as a Bulldog. She needs just three more to take over the top spot in the record book.
Head coach Keidane McAlpine is in his first season at the helm of the Georgia soccer program, after spending eight seasons leading USC. McAlpine won a national championship with USC in 2016, was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year in 2021, and never missed the postseason with the Trojans.
SERIES HISTORY
Ole Miss and Georgia are tied in the all-time series 11-11-3. The Rebels have won the last two matchups and three of the last four. Their last win in Athens came on October 6, 2013 and they are 4-6 all-time when playing in Athens. Head coach Matt Mott is 4-4-2 in his career against Georgia.
PREVIOUS GAME (3/6/21)
Ole Miss put on an offensive clinic last time out against Georgia, scoring three goals, including the first of Jenna Kemp's career, in a non-conference matchup in Montevallo, Alabama.
The Rebels out-shot the Bulldogs 15-10, including 11 shots in the first half. Every goal in the game was scored in the first half and all three Ole Miss goals were scored in a stretch of just over 10 minutes of play.
Kemp scored first for the Rebels as Mo O'Connor found her with a great pass across the field. Kemp sent her shot in from beyond 18 yards in the 22nd minute to put Ole Miss up 1-0 early. It marked the sophomore's first collegiate goal.
O'Connor also had a few good looks early on, leading the Rebel attack. Just six minutes after the Rebels' first goal from Kemp, Channing Foster gave O'Connor a great feed on the run and the sophomore made a move on the Georgia defender to get some separation before sending a strike into the upper 90, just past the outstretched UGA keeper, giving Ole Miss a 2-0 lead.
It took the Bulldogs a while to get their offense going, but they finally were able to pressure midway through the first half. Georgia's Madison Haugen put the Bulldogs on the board, cutting the deficit to one goal. While Georgia appeared to be gaining some momentum, Ramsey Davis took it all away with a banger from the right corner of the box. Ole Miss took the 3-1 lead into the half and never looked back.
POWERFUL PAIR
Ole Miss forwards Mo O'Connor and Marykate McGuire have been tough for opposing defenses to stop this season. McGuire leads the team with seven goals and O'Connor's penalty kick goal against Texas A&M was her sixth.
It's the second consecutive year and 12th in the last 14 seasons, the Rebels have two players with six or more goals. Only other SEC team with multiple 6-plus goal scorers is Alabama.
SHOOT AROUND
The Rebels are 7-1-1 when taking more shot than their opponents and 4-0-1 with more shots on goal. Ole Miss is also undefeated when taking more than ten shots in a single game.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Ole Miss women's soccer is a win away from their fifth straight season with double-digit wins. It would mark the ninth season with 10-plus wins in the last 11 seasons, missing it by one win in 2016.
The program has won at least 10 games in 16 seasons.
STARTING OFF RIGHT
Out of the Rebels 27 goals this season, 10 goals have been scored in the first 20 minutes of the match. Ole Miss' quickest goal of the season came off the foot of keeper Ashley Orkus. She scored the first goal of a 2-1 win over Kentucky with 1:25 off the clock.
BREAKING RECORDS
Ole Miss continues to break program records. Ole Miss' 9-0-2 record was the best start for the first 11 games by win percentage in school history. Ashley Orkus already broke Ole Miss' career shutout record and recently became the all-time career saves leader. Orkus also moved ahead of Marnie Merritt for second most goalkeeper wins at 41
The Rebels went 3-0 in SEC games for the first time in program history.
TRANSFER SUCCESS
The Rebels signed six transfers during the offseason, which is the second most in the SEC. Four start for Ole Miss, which is second-most in the SEC and tied fourth in the nation. Marykate McGuire leads the way with sevens goals along with four assists.
SYD VICIOUS
Picking a ball off near midfield, 6th-year senior defender Sydney Michalak made a dazzling run before firing into the back of the net for Ole Miss' second goal against Memphis. It was Michalak's first goal since her collegiate debut in 2018, still playing as a forward at that time. The Rebel left back also helped Ole Miss lock up a pair of clean sheets during the week. For her efforts, Michalak was named to the TopDrawerSoccer.com Team of the Week.
GETTING DUSTY IN HERE
While the first goal of any season is a special one, the Rebels' opening tally of the 2022 season came with a little extra meaning. Fourteen minutes into the match, redshirt-freshman Lauren Montgomery cleaned up a Mo O'Connor rebound and slid the ball under the keeper for her first collegiate goal, coming just over a year after tearing her ACL during the 2021 preseason and missing her true freshman campaign.
IT JUST MEANS MO'
When the lights shine brightest, Rebel striker Mo O'Connor steps her game up to another level. Of O'Connor's 18 career goals, nine have come against conference opposition, including five of seven goals in 2021. O'Connor's five goals in league play last season were tied for the most in the conference.
BEEN AROUND THE BLOCK
In his 13th season at the helm of the Ole Miss program, Matt Mott is the fourth-longest tenured head coach in the SEC. Mott is also the third-longest tenured head coach active at Ole Miss.
SEC's Longest Tenured Head Coaches
1. G Guerreiri (Texas A&M) - 29 seasons
2. Karen Hoppa (Auburn) - 24 seasons
3. Shelley Smith (South Carolina) - 22 seasons
4. Matt Mott (Ole Miss) - 13 seasons
5. Colby Hale (Arkansas) - 11 seasons
BIG SHOES TO FILL
With the departure of star players like Channing Foster, Haleigh Stackpole and Molly Martin, Ole Miss will have plenty of firepower to replace in 2022. Foster finished her career with 44 goals, tied for the second most in program history, while Stackpole's 31 career assists rank third all-time at Ole Miss, including 16 assists in 2021 alone. Meanwhile, Martin and her aerial threat led the Rebels with 10 goals a season ago. Overall, Ole Miss will need to replace 25-of-36 goals (69.4%), 23-of-44 assists (52.3%) and 73-of-116 points (62.9%) from the 2021 season.
G.O.A.T.
Entering her fourth season between the posts for the Rebels, goalkeeper Ashley Orkus sits near the top in the Ole Miss record books in several statistical categories. Below is a breakdown of Orkus' approach of program-records:
GOALKEEPER SAVES
1. Ashley Orkus (2018-pres.) - 302
2. Kelly McCormick (2011-2014) - 297
3. Marnie Merritt (2014-18) - 277
4. Melinda Smith (1998-2001) - 232
GOALKEEPER WINS
1. Kelly McCormick (2011-2014) - 42
2. Ashley Orkus (2018-pres.) - 41
3. Marnie Merritt (2014-18) - 40
4. Brittany Gillespie (2000-03) - 32
SHUTOUTS
1. Ashley Orkus (2018-pres.) - 26
2. Kelly McCormick (2011-2014) - 22
3. Brittany Gillespie (2000-03) - 22
4. Marnie Merritt (2014-18) - 21
5. Ann Shelton (2004-07) - 18
DANCING QUEENS
Ole Miss is one of five SEC teams to receive a bid at least five of the last seven seasons (Arkansas, Auburn, South Carolina, Texas A&M) and also one of five SEC teams to make four of the last five NCAA Tournaments.
POLL POSITION
For the second consecutive year, Ole Miss was ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll, coming in at No. 18. The Rebels were slotted at No. 23 in the 2021 preseason poll. Prior to last season, Ole Miss had never been ranked in the preseason by the United Soccer Coaches. The Rebels are one of four SEC teams ranked in the 2022 iteration of the poll, joining Arkansas, Tennessee and South Carolina.
BEST OF THE BEST
Ole Miss keeper Ashley Orkus was named to the 2022 TopDrawerSoccer.com Preseason Best XI First Team. It is the second consecutive year that the two-time defending SEC Goalkeeper of the Year has been named to the first team. Orkus has also received postseason Best XI honors from TopDrawerSoccer the last two seasons, earning a first team nod in 2020 and landing on the third team in 2021.
Orkus was also selected to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List for the third consecutive year. The senior was the only goalkeeper among the group of 15 players named a semifinalist for the 2021 edition of college soccer's top individual honor.
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". Fans can also now follow Ole Miss on TikTok at @OleMissWSoccer.
