Alabama Soccer Wins Power of Pink Match Over Mississippi State, 1-0

Riley Tanner lifted the Crimson Tide to the win by scoring her second goal of the season.
Alabama Athletics

Riley Tanner scored the lone goal as the Alabama soccer team won its annual Power of Pink match 1-0 on Sunday afternoon.  

Alabama (8-7-0, 3-3-0 SEC) defeated Mississippi State (3-6-3, 1-4-1 SEC) off a cleared corner kick, with Tanner firing the ball back through the box and into the net for her second goal of the season. 

“Really pleased with how we grew into the game," Crimson Tide head coach Wes Hart said in a release. "A little bit of a slow start, but as the game wore on, we got better and better. They are very stingy defensively. They frustrated us in the first half, but we found ways to break them down in the second.”

Mississippi State had one offensive opportunity during the first half, after firing a shot toward net, but goalkeeper McKinley Crone came up big to preserve the shutout and keep the Bulldogs searching for a goal.

Alabama came out on the attack in the second half, leading the board in shots (10) and corners (five). After a cleared corner kick in the 72nd minute, Alabama’s Tanner cracked a shot off on her first touch.

She's tied for the team lead in game-winning goals with Reyna Reyes at two. 

The Crimson Tide led the Bulldogs in shots, 12-11, and corners, 8-4.

Goalkeeper McKinley Crone registered three saves, giving her 40 saves on the season to get the win. It was also her fourth shutout of the season as the Crimson Tide held an opponent scoreless for the fifth time.

MSU goalkeeper Maddy Anderson took the loss while making nine saves. 

Alabama Athletics

Published
Christopher Walsh
CHRISTOPHER WALSH

Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of BamaCentral, which first published in 2018. He's covered the Crimson Tide since 2004, and is the author of 26 books including Decade of Dominance, 100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, Nick Saban vs. College Football, and Bama Dynasty: The Crimson Tide's Road to College Football Immortality. He's an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.