MOBILE, Ala. – Mississippi State broke through in the 36th minute of the contest and added two more goals in the second half in a 3-0 victory over the University of South Alabama soccer team Sunday afternoon at The Cage.

The Bulldogs stay unbeaten at 4-0 this season and the Jaguars drop to 2-1.

GAME FACTS
- Mississippi State nearly took the lead five minutes in when AK Ward hit the crossbar, and five minutes later, USA goalkeeper Justice Stanford made her first save of the day on a header from Brooke McKee
- The Bulldogs went up 1-0 at 35:59 thanks to Gabriella Coleman dribbling almost 50 yards before passing to Zakirah McGillivary at the top of the 18-yard box; McGillivary beat Stanford into the lower right corner
- McGillivary almost doubled the lead in the 41st minute but hit the crossbar
- It took less than five minutes after intermission for MSU to add to its advantage; Ward fed Makayla Waldner who put her shot into the right corner
- The Bulldogs added their final tally at 68:42; Monigo Karnley's cross went by two Jaguar defenders before finding Niah Johnson in the six-yard box, who slotted it home
-  MSU held a 25-3 advantage in shots, including 7-3 on goal
- Freshman Brianna Mascia forced MSU goalkeeper Rhylee Decrane to make a save in the 70th minute, and freshmen Tilly Wilkes and Brenna McPartlan put direct kicks on target in the 78th and 89th minutes, respectively
- Stanford made four saves while her counterpart had three stops

NOTES
- Mississippi State has won each of its four games this season by three goals
- The Bulldogs are 2-0-1 in the last three games in the series; the previous three games were all Jaguar victories
- Sunday was South Alabama's first loss by multiple goals at home since 2012
- USA had allowed just 15 shots total in its first two games combined

THEY SAID IT
Head Coach Richard Moodie
On not giving up: "That's a very good Mississippi State team. I think the coaches got it wrong tactically a little bit. The one thing that you can take out of this is there was not a white shirt on that field that stopped working and put their head down feeling sorry for themselves. That's the sign of a great team. They fought all the way to the end. I couldn't ask for more."

On the loss: "It's disappointing because we didn't get the ball down and show them what they were capable of. I think we got a little scared of the occasion. Like I said, I think we got it wrong. The girls did what we asked them to do. The only thing I can say is we didn't get the ball down and play like we wanted. (Mississippi State) pressed, created problems and we spent more time off the ball chasing than we did on the ball. They wore us out and they did really well."

On not creating enough scoring opportunities: "We didn't create enough and that's where we're a little disappointed. When you look at the SEC schedule and the way things are shaping up, they played Thursday and had an extra day of rest. Is that a contributing factor? Absolutely. There's a lot to be said for that, but that falls back on me. It's a tough one, but we'll go back to practice. Like I said, I didn't see a white shirt put their head down and give up; we played the full 90 minutes. You can take a lot out of this game and the way the girls handled themselves. We fought all the way to the end. I'm proud of them."

UP NEXT
The Jaguars resume their homestand Thursday with a 7 p.m. contest against LSU in the Jaguar Classic. At 4 p.m., Ole Miss will take on Troy.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Upper 90 Club, the soccer specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund.  All gifts to the Upper 90 Club go directly to support the South Alabama soccer program.  For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/upper90

—USA—