No. 3 Arkansas hands No. 13 Mississippi State first SEC loss in nearly two years

The Bulldogs threw two big punches to start Sunday's heavyweight SEC match, but Arkansas scored four unanswered goals to secure the win.

Mississippi State Goal Keeper Sarah Wommack (#1) during the match between the Jacksonville State Gamecocks and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at the MSU Soccer Field in Starkville, MS. | Mississippi State Athletics

Not even the Great Wall of China could’ve stopped some of No. 7 Arkansas’s goals, let alone the Great Wall of Sarah.

The Razorbacks scored three-straight goals to overcome a 2-0 deficit after just six minutes of play to defeat No. 13 Mississippi State 4-2 on Sunday night.

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It’s the first regular season conference loss for the Bulldogs in almost two years after going 10-0 in SEC games last season and 4-0-1 to start this season.

First strike! @zoemain7 wastes no time!

💻 https://t.co/2E4f1Altld#HailState pic.twitter.com/LwNeythimZ

— Mississippi State Soccer (@HailStateSOC) October 5, 2025

Mississippi State’s Zoe Main scored a goal in the 3rd minute of the match and Tatum Borman followed quickly with another goal in the sixth minute to make the score 2-0.

After that second goal, the Razorbacks flipped a switch and controlled the match’s pace for the remainder of the game.

Arkansas had a couple of first half chances to bounce off the crossbar before Zoe Susi beat Bulldogs’ keeper Sarah Womack on a penalty kick for the Arkansas’s first goal.

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Shortly after halftime, Arkansas tied the game with a Kyndal Ewertz goal in the 47th minute. Ewertz scored the goal on a crossing assist from Molly Teed, putting the ball into the bottom right corner, just past a diving Womack.

The Razorbacks’ Taylor Berman broke the 2-2 tie in the 57th minute on a free kick from Presley Marvil and Erwertz scored her second goal of the match in the 82nd minute to account for the 4-2 final score.

Mississippi State had some goal-scoring opportunities in the final minutes of the match, none better than in the final five minutes when Arkansas goalkeeper Evelyn Vitali blocked a shot and another shot had to be saved by a defender.

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In the end, the Bulldogs had more corner kicks, shots and shots on goal than Arkansas did in the match and it was the Razorbacks who committed the most fouls (16-11).

The win puts Arkansas ahead of Tennessee in the SEC standings. Arkansas is now 4-1-1 record in conference play with 16 points, the Volunteers have 15 points with a 5-1 SEC record.

Mississippi State remains in third place in the SEC standings with 13 points and a 4-1-1 conference record. The Bulldogs are one point ahead of South Carolina (3-0-3) in the standings.