Bulldogs Down Texas A&M, Stay Unbeaten In League Play

Friday, October 9

Starkville

7 p.m.

Mississippi State

8-1-4, 2-0-4

Texas A&M

4-9-0, 0-6-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Texas A&M	0	1	1
Mississippi St.	2	0	2

Highlights Press Conference

Bulldogs Down Texas A&M, Stay Unbeaten In League Play

October 09, 2026 | Soccer

Box Score Highlights Press Conference

By: Brian Ogden, Director/Communications

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State defeated Texas A&M, 2-1, on Friday night to remain unbeaten in SEC play and pass the double-digit points threshold in the conference standings.

State (8-1-4, 2-0-4 SEC) is now tied for fifth in the league and just two points out of a first-round bye in November's SEC Tournament with four matches remaining. Two of MSU's four matches left are head-to-head with teams ahead of it in the standings and the other two are against teams that would not currently qualify for the conference tournament.

Coming off of three straight scoreless ties, momentum swung in State's favor early. In the 17th minute Hailey Johnson appeared to have scored, but the goal was waved off for offsides. It would not matter, however, as the Bulldogs scored twice in the next 10 minutes.

Johnson served a cross in to Kara Harris to break the tie in the 21st minute. It was Harris' second goal of the season, matching her best total in a year. In the 25th minute, Kati Anne Shepherd's shot was saved, but the goalkeeper could not hold onto it. Johnson beat the keeper to the rebound to give the Bulldogs a two-goal lead.

The pair of goals came just 4:36 apart, marking the fifth pair of goals in under six minutes by MSU this season. In the last 10 seasons, State has only recorded 22 such pairs of goals and this year's total exceeds the past two years combined.

"I thought in our first half we competed really well, created some good chances in transition, looked dangerous," head coach Kevin O'Brien said. "I thought we passed it better in the first half. I think when A&M came out in the second half just with a lot of urgency to get back in the game, it really kind of tripped us up, so kudos to them and congratulations on their adjustments. It made the game harder."

From there, the match got physical as the Bulldog defense dug in to preserve its lead. Texas A&M (4-9-0, 0-5-0 SEC) scored in the 54th minute with a rebound goal of its own. In the 87th minute, the Aggies nearly had an equalizer, but Eden Nicholson made a save on the goal line.

Less than a minute later, State saw Ashley Tutas sent off with her second yellow card for denying a goal scoring opportunity. Playing shorthanded, Harris forced a turnover and would have had a breakaway chance, but the Texas A&M goalkeeper obstructed her, receiving a red card of her own in the process.

"They got that goal, and then it was a dog fight to the end," O'Brien added. "I told the girls, three points ugly, three points pretty, it doesn't matter. Three points is really important. This program needed it to kind of move up the standings and hopefully get us closer to the playoffs. That's the ultimate goal for this team and this group."

The match finished with nine combined cards between the team, a new MSU Soccer Field record, and 43 total fouls.

Jenny Harrison made five saves and made a key pass that opened up the scoring chance on State's second goal.

The Bulldogs return to the pitch on Thursday, Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. CT when they host Oklahoma. That match will air on SEC Network+.

For more information on the Bulldog soccer program, follow on X, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSOC."