LEXINGTON, Ky. - Mississippi State (9-3-3, 4-2-1 SEC) traveled to Kentucky to take on the Wildcats (8-1-5, 2-1-4 SEC) Sunday evening. This highly anticipated matchup paired two squads vying to break the tie for third in the SEC standings in front of a national audience on the SEC Network. After 90 minutes of play, the road Dawgs emerged victorious and handed the Wildcats their first loss of the season.

Kentucky came into this matchup with an unblemished record and was enjoying its longest-ever undefeated steak to kick off a season, including a flawless record in their first SEC contests. Through the first 13 matches of the season, UK had been nothing short of elite on defense as they were first in the conference in goals allowed with only six conceded. The Bulldogs had their work cut out for them if they wanted to hand the Wildcats their first loss of the season.

As the match got underway on a chilly Lexington evening, State was relentless on the attacking end, gaining opportunity after opportunity as they registered four shots to Kentucky's none with three of them forcing the Wildcat's Marz Josephson to make a save. Heading into the half, both teams were without a goal as State held Kentucky without a shot in the first 45 minutes.

Shortly after the break, the Dawgs found themselves in the attacking third once again as Haley McWhirter sent a ball inside the box that bounced around before it went off a Kentucky player and into the back of the net, resulting in an own goal for the Wildcats to give State a 1-nill lead at the 50th minute.

The Wildcats were not going to go down without a fight as the second half showcased their attacking prowess as they registered six shots with three of them resulting in Maddy Anderson saves.

The match was a back-and-forth affair in the second half as both squads were tough as nails on the ball, resulting in a highly intense matchup as the battle of the neutral zone waged on.

In the 78th minute, State struck again as Hannah Johnson sent a beautiful pass over the defense and onto the foot of Maggie Wadsworth who weaved her way past the backline and fired a shot that would result in her third goal of the season to put MSU on top 2-nill.

The Dawgs defense stood tall and was relentless throughout the contest as the backline continued their defensive ways in front of Anderson who picked up her eighth shutout of the season and 22nd in her career in the Maroon and White.

This win marked only the second time Mississippi State had defeated a top-20 opponent on the road in program history and the first time that State has defeated the Wildcats in back-to-back encounters. State is now tied for second in points within the SEC 13 and carries the second-longest unbeaten streak at 3-0-1 in their last four SEC matchups.

Your 9-3-3 Bulldogs will return to the MSU Soccer Field for the final time in the regular season on Thursday as they are set to face off against Vanderbilt. Thursday's match is set for a 6 PM kick and will mark State's third straight nationally televised match as they will be featured on the SEC Network. Fans are encouraged to wear pink for the annual OCH Think Pink game.