Soccer Seeks Second-Straight Bulldog Classic Title

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Following a dominating season opener, the Mississippi State soccer team wraps a three-match homestand by hosting the third Bulldog Classic Friday and Sunday at the MSU Soccer Field.

Coach Neil MacDonald's Bulldogs play UT Martin on Friday at 7 p.m. and conclude the weekend Sunday with a 2 p.m. kickoff against South Alabama.

Admission to the matches is free, and fans can follow Bulldog Soccer on Twitter (twitter.com/mstateSOC) and Facebook (facebook.com/mstateSOC). Also, a free video stream of the match will be available on www.hailstate.com/hstvlive.

The first 100 fans to the Facebook Friday match will receive a free MSU soccer and volleyball schedule T-shirt to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Title IX. Prior to Sunday's match, Hardee's will give away sandwiches to the first 50 fans

Along with MSU's two matches, Mississippi Valley State will play South Alabama at 4 p.m. on Friday and UT Martin at 11 a.m. on Sunday.

State hopes to win the Bulldog Classic for the second-consecutive year, as it claimed victory in two heart-stopping overtime matchups against Arkansas Pine-Bluff and Lipscomb last season.

UT Martin opened the year with a 2-0 loss against SEC foe Vanderbilt, while South Alabama currently holds a 1-1 record after defeating Nicholls State and falling to Mercer.

Historically, MSU holds the all-time series lead against both the Skyhawks and the Jaguars. The Bulldogs opened the 2010 slate with a 1-0 win at UTM in the schools' lone meeting, while Mississippi State holds a 5-2 series lead over USA, including four-straight victories.

Newcomers led an impressive offensive performance for Mississippi State in its 2-1 win against Southeastern Louisiana last Friday.

Freshman Honeye Heydari netted the Bulldogs' first goal of the season in the 23rd minute, while junior transfer Sasha Vrany smashed home a header 12 minutes later. SLU added a goal just before halftime, but the Dawgs played ferociously on both ends of the pitch in the second half, controlling ball possession and outshooting the Lady Lions by 21.