Online Desk
The Ole Miss Rebels’ soccer season came to an abrupt end after the Rebels did not make the NCAA Tournament.
Five SEC teams made the NCAA Tournament. Arkansas, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Florida and Vanderbilt are the five teams moving on in postseason play.
The tournament bracket came out a week after Ole Miss’ loss to Arkansas in the quarterfinals of the SEC tournament and a huge first-round win against Mississippi State. The Rebels dropped to No. 54 in the RPI following the loss, which was low enough to keep them out of the tournament.
The Rebels had a solid season despite the short ending. Two Rebels landed on All-SEC honors. Channing Foster was named to the First Team All-SEC while Mo O’Connor was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team. It is the third straight year a Rebel is on the First Team All-SEC list and the fourth time in the last five seasons that a Rebel is on the SEC All-Freshman Team.
This was Foster’s third year in a row making it on an All-SEC team. She was selected to the 2017 SEC All-Freshman Team and 2017 All-SEC Second Team, as well as the 2018 All-SEC Second Team. Foster also led the conference in shots per game, averaging 4.2 a game.
O’Connor, an Oxford native, finished her freshman campaign with two goals on the season and was voted as one of the top eleven rookies in the SEC by the league’s coaches.
Ashley Orkus was third in the SEC in saves per game, averaging 4.5 a game.
The Rebels finished with an overall record of 10-7-3, ending at 3-4-3 in SEC play. Three of their four SEC losses came from teams that qualified for the tournament. Their biggest win of the season was against No. 19 Florida, the Rebels’ first win over the Gators in a decade.
The season ended sooner than hoped, but the Rebels are ready to focus on next season and work to get back into the NCAA Tournament.
