Davidson Steals Win from Georgia Southern, 3-2

STATESBORO, Ga. – The Georgia Southern men’s soccer team produced a 2-0 advantage early in the second half, but visiting Davidson stole the Eagle lead after a late rally, Saturday afternoon (Oct. 13) at Eagle Field and held on for the Southern Conference victory by a 3-2 decision.

Georgia Southern falls to 5-8-0 overall and 1-3-0 in conference play, while Davidson improves to 2-10-0 and 1-3-0 in league action.

After a scoreless battle in the first half during which both teams tallied five shots, apiece, the Eagles broke the scoring drought and got up on the scoreboard first in the 57th minute.  Shortly after being awarded a penalty kick because of a Davidson defensive foul in the box, the Eagles’ Kim Kroken (Blystadia, Norway) calmly nailed his first career goal.

Less than four minutes later, the Eagles extended the lead to 2-0 when junior Daniel Smith (Marietta, Ga.) collected a loose ball outside the box, quickly dribbled around the Davidson defense into an open spot where he unloaded a winner from 17 yards out.

“From the last 15 minutes of the first half to the first 30 minutes of the second half, I thought we controlled the game and played well,” said head coach Kevin Kennedy.

But the momentum changed sixteen minutes later in the 77th minute, when a Georgia Southern foul inside the box gave Davidson a penalty kick and the opportunity to close the gap.  Robby Hoak took the shot and the Wildcats closed the GSU lead to 2-1.

In the 83rd minute, Davidson’s Charlie Reiter fired a shot from 25 yards out to knot the match at 2-2.  Just under two minutes later, Wildcat Alex Caskey lobbed a long ball to teammate Robert O’Donnell 10 yards out where he flicked a header shot into the back of the net for the game-winning goal.

The Eagles tried to tie up the match in the waning minutes but were limited to only one shot on goal in the in the 87th minute as Davidson managed to hold on for their first conference victory.

A highly physical match, Davidson led the shot tally 13-10 while Georgia Southern claimed an 8-3 advantage in corner kicks.

“I thought we matched them physically,” said Kennedy.  “We are just young and inexperienced.  We’re just not mature enough to handle those situations right now.  Hopefully it will come with time.”

Senior goalkeeper Brian Young (Roswell, Ga.) made six saves in a full 90 minutes of action, while Robby Goldsberry earned the victory in the cage, stopping three shots on goal.

The Eagles will continue their two-game homestand as they return to action hosting Appalachian State, Saturday, Oct. 20.  The match is slated for 1 p.m. at Eagle Field.

Category: Men's Soccer

Published on Saturday, 13 October 2007 00:20