STARKVILLE — You can hear the confidence in Zakirah McGillivary’s voice.
Given the forward from Brooklyn, New York is a freshman, it shouldn’t be surprising. After all, she doesn’t care the Mississippi State women’s soccer team has never qualified for the NCAA tournament, or that it hasn’t advanced to the Southeastern Conference tournament since 2004.
McGillivary doesn’t spend a lot of time dwelling on what MSU did prior to her arrival because she and her classmates and the rest of the Bulldogs are focused on writing new history.
McGillivary scripted a thrilling ending to the latest chapter Thursday night when her left-footed blast to the upper left corner from 25 yards out lifted MSU to a 2-1 victory against No. 13 South Carolina in overtime in front of a school-record crowd of 1,402 at the MSU Soccer Field.
With the win, MSU (8-1, 1-1 SEC) received a jolt of confidence that figures to carry over to 2 p.m. Sunday (SEC Network) when it will face No. 19 Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee.
“We’re capable of beating all of these other teams, especially the ones that haven’t even made it to the Final Four (like South Carolina did in 2017),” McGillivary said. “Now we’re coming off this great win and we’re going to take care of our bodies. When we meet Tennessee it is going to be a battle.”
MSU hasn’t beaten Tennessee since Sept. 24, 2006. The teams didn’t play each other last season, but the Volunteers have won eight of the last nine meetings.
That shouldn’t faze MSU, which ended an 11-game winless streak against South Carolina. For a team that was ranked No. 2 in the NCAA’s first Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), the victory supports the team’s strength of schedule and gives it a signature win that will bolster its resume when it comes time for the NCAA tournament selection committee to set the postseason field.
The game against Tennessee will be MSU’s third in a row against a ranked opponent. Things won’t get any easier at 7 p.m. Friday when MSU plays host to perennial SEC power Florida, which was picked first in the league’s preseason poll. Considering Arkansas beat Texas A&M on Thursday, the overall strength of schedule should bode well for every SEC team, but it will mean the Bulldogs will have to play with the focus and grinding mentality that epitomized their effort against the Gamecocks. MSU won more than its share of first and second balls and limited South Carolina’s effectiveness in its possession game, especially in the second half.
Freshman Niah Johnson also played a key role in MSU’s victory by converting a penalty kick in the second half to tie the match at 1. The goal was the third of the season for Johnson, who felt confident she hit her shot to the middle well enough to even the score.
“Not only our team, but our freshman class has been working so hard,” Johnson said. “We didn’t have the confidence in ourselves. Last year wasn’t the best season, but now we know we can do this and we put it all out there.”
A victory against Tennessee mark the first time MSU has defeated ranked opponents in consecutive matches, and the first time MSU has won back-to-back conference games since 2004.
More importantly, a win would guarantee the Bulldogs will finish the regular season above .500, which would mark just the second time in school history MSU has turned in a winning record in consecutive seasons (1996-97). A win or a tie would give MSU its best 10-game start in school history.
MSU second-year coach Tom Anagnost didn’t care two weeks ago when MSU was on the cusp of achieving its first national ranking. He likely doesn’t care about the possibilities of ending all of the streaks and making history this early in the regular season. Rest assured Anagnost will care a lot more when MSU breaks through and makes the SEC tournament and secures a bid to the NCAA tournament. Until then, Anagnost hopes the Bulldogs build on a “special goal” by a “special player.”
“We want everyone on our team to have an unshakable belief and faith in what we’re doing like the coaches do,” Anagnost said. “If we have that and everybody is all in, anything is possible.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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