Ole Miss Soccer Hands No. 5 LSU First Loss of the Season

On a night where temperatures dipped into the low 60’s, the Ole Miss offense brought the heat as the Rebels (7-1-2, 2-0-0 SEC) overwhelmed No. 5 LSU (8-1-0, 1-1-0) 2-0 on Thursday at the Ole Miss Soccer Stadium, handing the Tigers their first loss of the season and giving Ole Miss its highest-ranked win in program history.
 
While the Tigers brought top-5 billing to Oxford, it was the Rebels who played like one of the nation’s elite on the night. Ole Miss was on the front foot throughout the match, outshooting the Tigers 19-5.
 
As soon as the opening whistle blew, the Rebels stepped on the gas, applying sustained pressure on the Tiger back line. The Rebels created a handful of scoring chances in the opening 45 minutes, including Mo O’Connor striking the woodwork, but entered the locker room deadlocked in a scoreless tie.
 
After a couple of additional looks were thwarted by LSU, Molly Martin and the Rebels struck off a corner kick to push ahead in the 62^nd minute. True to form, Haleigh Stackpole sent in a tantalizing service from the flag and found Martin’s head, with the senior lifting her redirect above everyone and into the net to give Ole Miss a 1-0 lead.
 
Unrelenting, the Rebels continued to push for a second and hit paydirt in the 74^th minute through former Oxford Charger O’Connor. The feed came from Channing Foster, who used quick feet to create a yard of space to get a cross off. The pass hit a streaking O’Connor in the center of the box and the local product hit the ball with the deftest of touches, nestling the ball into the corner to give the Rebs some breathing room.
 
With a two-goal lead in tow, Ole Miss killed off the remaining 16 minutes expertly, with LSU posing no truly dangerous threat to Ashley Orkus’ goal as the Rebel keeper claimed her second clean sheet of the season.

Ole Miss will travel up to Arkansas to take on the Razorbacks on Sunday at 2 p.m. The match can be seen on SEC Network +.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports