The Gators and the Bulldogs combined for a total of 30 fouls in what became a gritty match.
Both teams harassed one another on the defensive end throughout the night and struggled to find momentum on offense. The Gators managed a total of three shots to the Bulldogs six as Mississippi State managed to slip one past UF.
The Florida Gators (5-4-3, 1-3-1 SEC) fell to the Mississippi State Bulldogs (7-3-3, 2-2-1 SEC) 1-0 Thursday night at Donald R. Dizney Stadium. This match was extremely physical on both sides throughout and was full of stoppages due to foul calls.
The Gators appeared sloppy and miscommunicated on several 50/50 balls. This combined with some questionable calls led to some visible frustration for Florida.
“This was an ugly game,” said Florida head coach Samantha Bohon. “We have to figure out how to be resilient and not allow those outside factors to get us off our way of playing.”
Both teams refused to give an inch defensively early and held each other to just one shot through the first 15 minutes. Mississippi State put the first shot of the game just wide of the left post which resulted in a goal kick for Florida.
In the 18th minute, junior Bulldogs forward Aitana Martinez-Montoya snuck a shot past Florida senior goalkeeper Alexa Goldberg inside of the right post.
The Gators responded with multiple centering passes toward the box five minutes later. However, Mississippi State senior goalkeeper Maddy Anderson punched both attempts out.
In the 28th minute, Florida redshirt senior defender Daviana Vaka picked up a yellow card.
Florida gave its best efforts to find scoring opportunities, but the Bulldogs did a great job of blocking the passing lanes. The Gators also did themselves no favors and miscommunicated on several balls throughout the first half.
Both sides played an extremely physical first half and combined for 15 fouls. The Gators were also held to just one shot as the Bulldogs entered the halftime break with a 1-0 lead.
The second half started very similar to the first, as both teams struggled to establish an offensive rhythm.
Florida failed to find any traction with its passing through the first 15 minutes of the second half which led to several frustration fouls.
In the 64th minute, the game was paused when junior Bulldogs midfielder Hannah Johnson was helped off the field after she sustained an apparent leg injury.
Senior Bulldogs midfielder Taylor James sent a shot on goal that was blocked by Vaka in the 75th minute.
Minutes later, Florida senior defender Josie Curtis gave the Gators their first shot of the second half that missed just wide of the bottom-left post.
In the final minute, Florida mounted a strong offensive push but was turned away by the Mississippi State defense. The Gators dropped this match 1-0 and only mustered three shots.
“I thought we adjusted well,” Bohon said. “We just didn’t play to our strengths as much as we needed to in the second half.”
The Gators will next be in action on the road against Georgia at 2 p.m. Sunday. The match will be broadcast on ESPNU.
Contact Austin Stirling at astirling@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @austinstirlingg
Austin Stirling is a third-year journalism major and sports reporter for The Alligator. He previously covered Gators women's basketball and is primarily covering soccer during the fall 2023 semester. He is a huge New York sports fan and is hoping the Jets can be a respectable football team for once in his life this season.
