Lady Vols Down Mississippi State, 2-1

Sunday, October 19

Starkville, MS

University of Tennessee

8-8-0, 5-3-0SEC

Mississippi State

5-12-0, 0-8-0SEC

Team	1	2	Final F
TENNESSEE	0	2	2
MISSISSIPPI STATE	1	0	1

October 19, 2008 | Soccer

Box Score

Oct. 19, 2008

Final Stats

Box Score

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Behind two second-half goals, the University of Tennessee women's soccer team notched a 2-1 win over Mississippi State on Sunday afternoon. The Lady Vols earned their second come-from-behind victory of the season and their fifth win in the last six matches.

"Today was a tough fought match and I give Mississippi State credit for battling for the full 90 minutes," UT Head Coach Angela Kelly said. "This always seems to be a difficult place for us to play."

The Lady Vols scored the game winner in 79th minute. After winning a throw-in halfway into the MSU end on the right side of the field, junior defender Sarah Jackyra sent the throw to sophomore forward Devon Swaim. The Levittown, Pa., native turned on the ball and rifled a shot from 20 yards. The upper-90 blast sliced just under the crossbar and into the upper left corner of the net. The goal marked Swaim's third of the year and gave her at least one point in four of the last five matches.

Mississippi State got on the board first in the 16th minute, when Frazier blasted a shot from the left flank into the back of the net. The goal was the Bulldogs' first since Oct. 10.

Tennessee drew even just four minutes into the second half, as senior forward Kylee Rossi brought the ball across the top of the box and launched a shot past MSU keeper Taryn Holland and into the upper right corner of the net. The score was Rossi's 12th of the season and second of the weekend. The goal also tied Rossi's career high, set last year.

Tennessee out-shot the Bulldogs 10-3 in the second half, putting three strikes on frame in the final 45 minutes. The Orange and White nearly took the lead in the 59th minute, when Rossi played a ball into the box for sophomore midfielder Julie Edwards. The Glenmoore, Pa., native settled the ball before taking a shot that got past Holland and was cleared off the line by Mississippi State senior defender Bethany Frazier.

The first half saw the Lady Vols keep the ball in their offensive half of the field for a majority of the time. Tennessee, however, could not make the most of their 11 shots, putting just one on goal.

"We struggled to find a rhythm initially and then found our way throughout the second half," Kelly said. "In the second half we were able to combine better in the attacking third, which led to two world class goals from Kylee Rossi and Devon Swaim."

UT finished the match with 14 more shots than the Bulldogs and allowed fewer than two goals for the 10th time this season. Senior keeper Jaimel Johnson needed just one save to earn her eighth win of the season, helping the Lady Vols move their winning percentage back to .500 for the first time since Aug. 29.

Rossi and Swaim have carried the Tennessee scoring efforts of late, combining for 18 of the Lady Vols' last 23 points. With the goal today, Swaim set a new career-high for scoring and continues to maintain the No. 2 spot in the points column for UT with nine points on the year.

The Orange and White now look ahead to a short week that will see them take on Alabama at home on Thursday night. The Crimson Tide split its two matches this weekend, topping South Carolina on Friday before falling to Florida on Sunday. Tennessee enters the match with a 5-2-0 record at home this season. The match is set to kick off at 7 p.m. on Oct. 23 at Regal Stadium and will be televised live on FOX Sports South.