The University of Mississippi Athletics

Sunday, October 13
Oxford, Miss.
2 PM

Ole Miss

vs

South Carolina

Evie Ewing

Soccer Welcomes No. 23 South Carolina for Mental Health Awareness Match

10/12/2024 | Soccer

OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss will host No. 23 South Carolina this Sunday in Oxford. The match will be the teams Mental Health Awareness game. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. CT with Jake Hromada (pxp) Ian Banner (analyst) and Loral Winn (sideline) on the call for SEC Network+.

QUICK KICKS
  • Ole Miss was defeated in its last game at Missouri 0-5.
  • The Rebels and Gamecocks last met on October 13, 2023, in Columbia with the game ending in a 0-0 draw. South Carolina leads the all-time series 13-6-4.
  • Shu Ohba reached the 250 career save mark against Texas A&M on October 4th.
  • Ohba has made 34 saves over the last five games and ranks second in the SEC with 53 stops on the season. She made a season-high nine saves in the match at LSU on Sept. 22 for the most saves she's made in an Ole Miss uniform.
  • Katie Ramsden scored her first collegiate goal off a free kick against Texas A&M.
  • Kayla Keefer leads the Rebels in scoring with four goals and two assists for 10 total points.
  • Ramsden also leads the Rebels in assists with three.
  • 11 players have scored a goal this season: Kayla Keefer (4), Kelly Brady (3), Evie EwingSarah GrannoGili JohnsonBella LeonardAstrid NyquistKate SmithGrace Freeman, Aubrey Mister, and Katie Ramsden each have one.
  • In four of the five wins this season, the Rebels have generated 15 or more shots: Southern (33), Georgia State (15), McNeese (22), and at Samford (16).
  • In the five victories the Rebels have outshot their opponents (93-36) good for a plus 57 margin.
  • Keefer became the first freshman since Channing Foster in 2017 to record a hat trick and the 20th Rebel all-time to score three goals in a match.

LAST TIME OUT
Ole Miss fell 0-5 this past Thursday at Missouri. Milena Fischer scored a hat trick for the Tigers with Jessica Larson and Emily Derucki each adding one goal. The Rebels took 11 shots, placing five on goal, but could not crack the scoring column. Fischer put the Tigers in front in the 11th minute off an assist from Leah Selm. Kelly Brady drew a penalty kick in the 17th minute but was denied by Missouri keeper Kate Phillips. Missouri would push the lead to two as the first half winded down. The Tigers would add three more goals in the second half.

SCOUTING THE GAMECOCKS
No. 23 South Carolina (6-1-5, 3-1-1 SEC) enters after defeating Florida 2-0, this past Thursday in Columbia. Goals by Emma Bucci and Cat Barry lifted Carolina late in the second half against the Gators. Barry leads the Gamecocks in scoring with nine goals and 21 points on the season. Freshman Katie Shea Collins has won SEC weekly honors three times this season and has six goals in her rookie campaign. Brianna Behm leads Carolina in helpers with five on the season. South Carolina is led by head coach Shelley Smith who is in her 24th season at the helm of the program.

MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MATCH
Sunday's match will be the team's mental health awareness game. Green ribbons and thunder sticks will be handed out to attendees.

AS CONSISTENT AS THEY COME
Senior keeper Shu Ohba has been terrific in goal for the Rebels this season and passed the 250 career saves mark against Texas A&M on October 4th. The Fujisawa, Japan native is second in the SEC this season in saves (53) and second in saves per game (4.82). Ohba has made 34 stops over her last five starts. She made a season-high nine saves at LSU on September 22, good for the most saves she's made in an Ole Miss uniform.

IN THE TRENCHES
The defensive front for Ole Miss has been the strength of the group in 2024. The trio of Hattie Patterson, Tate Blincoe, and Riley Friesen have started 14 of 15 games on the pitch with each seeing over 1,200 minutes of action. The Rebels have four shutout wins this season all coming on home soil and eight games allowing one or fewer goals.

SPREADING THE LOVE
Eleven different players have scored through 15 games in 2024. Kayla Keefer leads the way with four, with Kelly Brady having three. Evie Ewing, Sarah Granno, Gili Johnson, Bella Leonard, Astrid Nyquist, Kate Smith, Grace Freeman, Aubrey Mister, and Katie Ramsden each have one. In four of their five wins this season, the Rebels have generated 15 or more shots. Across the five matches they have outshot their opponents (93-36), good for a plus 57 margin. Ole Miss generated 33 shots, 16 of them being on goal in their opening win vs. Southern.  It was the most shots by a Rebel team in a game since March 27, 2021 against Georgia Southern.

SEC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
The Southeastern Conference named Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania native Kayla Keefer as the SEC Soccer Freshman of the Week on August 19. Keefer picked up her first award after just one game on the pitch for the Rebels. She is the first Rebel since 2020 to receive Freshman of the Week honors.

Keefer became the first freshman since Channing Foster in 2017 to record a hat trick and the 20th Rebel all-time to score three goals in a match. She led an explosive offensive attack in which Ole Miss generated 33 shots, 16 of them being on goal in their opening win vs. Southern. It was the most shots by a Rebel team in a game since March 27, 2021 against Georgia Southern.

BUILD
Molly Rouse enters year two at the helm of the Ole Miss Soccer program after being hired in May of 2023. She compiled a 7-7-3 record in year one, winning her first regular season game and her first conference game. The Rebels forced seven shutouts in 2023 and allowed one or fewer goals in 12 of the 17 matches. Ole Miss ranked fourth in the SEC in goals allowed per game (1.18) and fourth in goals allowed on the season (20).

PUT THE LEAGUE ON NOTICE
Five Rebels were named to the 2024 SEC Preseason Watchlist Wednesday morning including Kelly Brady, Aubrey Mister, Lauren Montgomery, Shu Ohba, and Hattie Patterson.

Brady returns for her senior season after leading the Rebel attack in 2023 with eight goals scored. She converted all three of her penalty kick opportunities and scored four game winners. Mister was the Rebels' assist leader last season and finished third on the team in points. Montgomery finished third on the team in minutes played and started in every game but one.

Ohba started 14 games in goal for the Rebels last year, putting up the fifth-lowest single season goals against average in program history. Patterson played in all 17 games on the back line as a freshman for the Rebels last year.

RETURNING FIREPOWER
Ole Miss will return its top two goal scorers from a season ago. Senior Kelly Brady led the team in goals scored, points, shots, shots on goal, and penalty kicks. She became the first Rebel to score a hat trick since 2018 and converted all three of the Rebels' penalty kick attempts on the year. Sophomore Gili Johnson finished second on the team in total points, goals scored, and shots on goal. She tallied four goals on the season including a brace against Louisiana Tech on Sept. 10. Johnson saw 860 minutes of action in her rookie season, appearing in all 17 games making 10 starts.

BRICK WALL
One of the premier keepers in the SEC returns between the posts in 2024 for the Rebels in Shu Ohba. Ohba enters fresh off competing with Team Japan as an alternate goalkeeper at the 2024 Paris Olympics. In her 15 games last season she led the SEC in saves and saves per match, making 67 saves for an average of 4.47 per game. Ohba ranked second in the conference in save percentage (.838) and posted seven shutouts in her 2023 campaign. She earned SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors twice, becoming the first Rebel since 2012 to do so. Ohba also received All-SEC Second Team honors and was selected to the 2023 United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region Team.

AN IMPRESSIVE FRESHMAN CLASS
The program welcomes 12 freshmen to the roster for the 2024 season. Kayla Keefer earned three varsity letters at Central Columbia and was named the 2023 Gatorade Player of the Year in Pennsylvania. The trio of Astrid Nyquist, Katie Ramsden and Taylor Howarth all hail from international countries. Tate Blincoe arrives in Oxford after lettering in soccer, football and track in high school.

Tatum Hofstetter and Sofia Barrie both come to Ole Miss from the state of Arizona and Grace Smith joins the Rebels from Cypress, Texas. Maryann Beach scored 44 goals and dished out 28 assists in her high school career while Ally Thomas looks to add length to the Rebel back line. Rounding out the newcomers is Georgia Skelton who led Atlee to a 2021 Region Championship and Adora Nwosu who was a dual-sport athlete at Aaron Academy.

THROUGH THE PORTAL
Five players joined the Rebels during the offseason in EK Uithoven, Bella Leonard, Erin Martin, Taylor Prigge, and Sarah Granno. Uithoven returns to the Magnolia state after three seasons in Tucson at Arizona. Sophomore Bella Leornard arrives in Oxford after one year at Notre Dame.

Senior Erin Martin appeared in 55 games at Georgetown, making 15 starts. She earned BIG EAST All-Freshman honors her rookie season and earned BIG EAST All-Academic accolades her sophomore campaign.  Sophomore Taylor Prigge looks to bolster the goalkeeper room coming over from Utah.

Sophomore Sarah Granno arrives in Oxford after one season at Memphis. The Roseville, California native appeared in 15 matches and scored one goal for the Tigers.

STAY CONNECTED
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Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss Soccer on X at @OleMissSoccer, on the Ole Miss Soccer Facebook page, and on Instagram at @officialolemisssoccer. Subscribe to the Ole Miss soccer newsletter stay up to date with the best content from the pitch.
 
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