STARKVILLE — Goalkeepers remember crooked numbers.
Charged with keeping as clean a sheet as possible, goalkeepers take it a little more personally when an opponent scores more than one or two goals in a match.
That’s why Skylar Rosson remembers the Mississippi State soccer team’s game against the University of Florida last season. Rosson surrendered five goals and made eight saves in Florida’s 7-1 victory in Gainesville, Fla.
“We just didn’t play our game,” Rosson said. “The ball was just getting shoved down us the whole game. It was really stressful.”
Rosson and the Bulldogs showed Sunday they are a different group — one that despises crooked numbers.
Elisabeth Sullivan scored 37 seconds into the match, and Rosson made 13 saves to help MSU upset No. 11 Florida 1-0 on Senior Day at the MSU Soccer Field.
“Unbelievable,” Mississippi State coach Neil Macdonald said of the performance by his redshirt junior goalkeeper. “It was just an outstanding performance. She has been very consistent all year, and she is capable of that type of performance. She inspired the win. There is no doubt about it. Today it looked like she was possessed.”
The victory was just MSU’s second in the 13-game series against Florida. The only other victory was a 1-0 win on Oct. 24, 2003, in Starkville. The latest result was even more satisfying because it helped send seniors Tarah Henderson, Kim Pettit, Serena Prendergast, and Taylor Turnipseed out on a high note. Those four will play their final regular-season home game at 7 p.m. Thursday against the University of Kentucky.
A victory in that match would keep MSU (5-8-3, 2-5-1 Southeastern Conference) in the hunt to make the eight-team SEC tournament on Nov. 2-6 in Orange Beach, Ala. MSU, which has three regular-season games remaining, entered Sunday’s play with only four points. Seven teams had at least 12 points.
Rosson was the star of the game, and could become MSU’s first SEC Player of the Week on Monday when the league office hands out the weekly awards. The 5-foot-10 veteran from Edmond, Okla., made one of her best saves with a little more than 22 minutes left in the first half when she denied a rush by Erika Tymrak. She made the last of her six saves in the first half when she dove to her left on a header in the final minute.
Things got tougher in the second half.
Rosson made a kick save on a shot by Barney and then a point-blank stop on an attempt by Tahnai Annis. Annie Speese and Tymrak worked together to force Rosson to deny their rush a little more than five minutes later. The rebound came down in the middle of the goal box, but a charging Barney touched the ball over the crossbar.
“Skylar is absolutely amazing,” Henderson said. “No words can really describe her back there. We know it can be 11 on 1 and she is going to get the ball. That is how much confidence we have in her. I believe she is the best goalkeeper to come through Mississippi State.”
Speese had the next best scoring effort with a little more than 18 minutes remaining, but her shot dribbled just wide right of the post. In the final three minutes, Rosson came off her line to corral a long ball intended for Barney and collected a chip shot from Tymrak to seal the shutout.
“We created lots of chances, but we didn’t finish,” said Florida coach Becky Burleigh, whose team slipped to 13-4 and 6-2 in the SEC. “Ultimately, the game is about finishing your chances. They finished their chance and we didn’t finish our multitude of chances and we lose 1-0. Soccer is a funny game.”
Rosson, who entered the day as the SEC leader with 50 saves, admitted she thought about MSU’s loss to Florida last year leading up to the start of play. This year, though, she said MSU is relying on greater team chemistry. That teamwork gave her confidence a similar result wasn’t going to happen Sunday.
“I have tons of confidence in my back line,” Rosson said. “I think that is the key. I think they have confidence in me. We just talk well and really have great team chemistry.
“I am ready. I have confidence in myself and I just play my game. I don’t come out scared or nervous. I just play my game.”
MSU pulled the upset thanks to a quick combination play and a defensive effort that absorbed and then attacked.
Sullivan took care of the offense. Amy Hoover started the attack from the middle of the field and slid a ball to the left to Sullivan. The sophomore forward carried it for a few touches and struck a left-footed shot that skipped under goalkeeper Taylor Burke. The shot was one of only four MSU had on the day (all by Sullivan), but it was more than enough because the defense followed the game plan.
In the first half, MSU allowed Florida to have open space just inside midfield. When the Gators pushed into the attacking third, the Bulldogs stepped aggressively and moved to dispossess.
In the second half, MSU settled back one or two more steps and gave Florida a little more room. Florida opted not to push the ball wide to stretch MSU or to take shots from 25 yards or more and tried to penetrate the defense with diagonal runs and give-and-goes. The Gators committed plenty of dangerous scoring chances, but the Bulldogs remained stingy and committed to applying pressure at the right times. MSU’s strategy limited Florida’s ability to use its speed and combination play and highlighted the Bulldogs’ ability to win 50-50 balls in tight space.
“We worked on it all week,” Macdonald said of his team’s game plan. “We have talked about buying into making those little adjustments, and the girls have been fantastic. Even in some of the tight games we have lost, the game plan has been great. We forced them to change their system and to change what they do. That means we’re doing a great job.”
On Sunday, Rosson delivered an effort that was even better than great.
“They did a great job of hanging on. Defensively, you couldn’t ask for more,” Burleigh said. “They kept the ball out of the net and held on for 90 minutes under a lot of pressure. (Rosson) did a good job. She made the saves she needed to make.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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