Gamecocks Dominate Ole Miss on Senior Night
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 8 South Carolina women’s soccer (12-1-2, 6-0-2) dominated Ole Miss (8-5-3, 2-3-3 SEC) 2-0 on Senior Night to remain undefeated in the SEC. Senior Elexa Bahr picked up the game-winning goal while the senior defensive group of Mikayla Krzeczowski, Rebecca Koch, Tatumn Milazzo and Grace Fisk helped secure the shutout.
The win puts the Gamecocks in sole possession of first place in the East Division of the latest SEC standings after Florida dropped its match to Tennessee. The Gamecocks remain just one point behind Arkansas in the overall conference standings.
“Tonight was a great night not only for our seniors, but our entire team,” head coach Shelley Smith said after the win. “We’ve set ourselves up to go into Florida and play for championships. We’re trying to win the East and we’re trying to win the overall title. Sunday is going to be a big game, and it seems to always come down to Florida and us all the time. It’s fitting because we are two of the stronger teams in the conference. It always makes it that much more intriguing when you face a team like that at the end of the season.”
Bahr’s goal came in the 15th minute, her fifth of the season. The native of Buford, Ga., Bahr redirected a ball with her right foot after a rolling pass from junior Lauren Chang to beat the Ole Miss goalkeeper. Bahr’s goal is the 17th of her career, with Carolina moving to 17-0-0 when she scores a goal in her career.
After Bahr’s goal, it was Mikayla Krzeczowski’s turn for a Senior Night moment. In her 80th consecutive start, in the 26th minute, Krzeczowski made a diving save to her left after a blast from Ole Miss. Krzeczowski was able to get a hand on it to redirect the ball that ended up hitting the post and ricocheting back into play where the Gamecock defense eventually cleared to safety. The save was one of three on the night for Krzeczowski.
“I don’t really remember the buildup, but I know they had a really good-looking shot,” senior defender Grace Fisk said of Krzeczowski’s save. “I saw [Mikayla’s] fingertip get on the ball, and that’s just a top quality save. That’s what we need her for. She’s not always called into action much, but when she does, she delivers. It was a great save and it kept us going forward.”
Carolina took its 1-0 lead into the locker room, using a dominant first half by outshooting the Rebels 8-3. It took just 18 minutes in the second half for the Gamecocks to double their lead. Junior midfielder Claire Griffiths collected an attempted clearance from Ole Miss at the top of the box and fired a rocket into the left side of the goal for her first goal of the season.
With the shutout, the Gamecocks now have 10 this season. For Krzeczowski, she adds yet another to her fantastic career, putting her at 43 and in a tie for the 14th most in NCAA women’s soccer history. It also adds on to her current SEC and program records.
For the senior class, the win is No. 41 during their almost four seasons in Columbia and the SEC victory is No. 32, both good enough for a tie for most wins by any senior class in program history with the 2018 class.
“Our entire staff is so proud of this senior class,” Smith said. “What probably makes us the proudest is watching how they have grown as people and how they’ve helped grow this program. They’ve impacted us both on and off the field. We hope they know they mean a lot to us and their teammates will definitely miss them.”
Carolina next faces Florida on Oct. 27 at 3 p.m. on the road. The match in Gainesville is scheduled for a broadcast on the SEC Network. The Gamecocks have won the last three meetings with the Gators.
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