ATLANTA, Ga. – Junior forward Blake Wilson scored twice in the second half and sophomore defender Emil Laursen added the game-winner off a corner kick from Sander Wang to lift the Georgia Southern men's soccer team to a 3-1 win over in-state rival Georgia State Saturday night at GSU Soccer Field. The win was worth one point in the Georgia Southern-Georgia State Rivalry Series and tied the series up at 1-1.

The Panthers (7-6, 0-1 Sun Belt), who entered Saturday night ninth in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Southeast Region poll, took an early lead in the fourth minute when Hannes Burmeister scored off a penalty kick. Georgia State was able to control much of the early going, but the second half was a different matter as the Eagles (5-5-1, 1-0 Sun Belt) continued to apply pressure to Georgia State's back row.

The Eagles' tenacity finally paid off in the 70^th minute when Wilson broke free with a service from goalkeeper Torgeir Fjaer and scored on an open goal to even the score at 1-1. Less than a minute later, Laursen scored the game-winner off a corner kick from Wang. Wilson then put the icing on the cake for the Eagles as he scored his eighth goal of the season in the 87^th minute.

MATCH FACTS
Georgia Southern (5-5-1, 1-0 Sun Belt) - 3
Georgia State (7-6, 0-1 Sun Belt) – 1

SCORING SUMMARY
4' – GAST – Hannes Burmeister penalty kick
70' – GS – Blake Wilson (7) scores on open goal off serve from Torgeir Fjaer
71' – GS – Emil Laursen (2) scores off corner kick from Sander Wang
87' – GS – Wilson (8) scores on open goal

NOTES
- Wilson has scored multiple goals in three games this season, including Saturday night.
- Laursen recorded his second game-winner of the season Saturday night.
- Georgia State entered Saturday's contest ninth in the NSCAA Southeast Region poll. It is the third win of the season for the Eagles over a team that was ranked in the top-10 of the Southeast Region at the time. The Eagles downed Stetson 2-1 on Sept. 2 when the Hatters were seventh in the region poll and Georgia Southern defeated North Florida 2-0 when the Ospreys were fifth in the Southeast Region.
- Saturday's win was the first win for the Eagles over the Panthers in Atlanta since Sept. 17, 1994. It was also the first win in the series for the Eagles since Nov. 14, 2014.
- Georgia Southern has now earned a positive result in three of the last four meetings between the two programs.
- Saturday's game was the Sun Belt Conference opener for both teams. Georgia Southern begins the conference slate 1-0 for the second time in three seasons. In 2014, the Eagles started the Sun Belt era with a 2-0 home win over Hartwick on Oct. 12, 2014.
- The Eagles are now 4-4 away from Eagle Field this season.
- Head coach John Murphy joins former head coaches Tom Norton and Kevin Chambers as the only three GS head coaches to defeat Georgia State in their first attempts. Norton's Eagles defeated the Panthers 3-2 in overtime on the road on Sept. 22, 1990. Chambers' 1996 squad defeated State 4-2 in Fayetteville, Ga. On Sept. 21.

QUOTE FROM COACH JOHN MURPHY
"Obviously we are very pleased with this result, but we cannot get too far ahead of ourselves as it's just the first conference game of the season. Tonight's performance showed a lot of character, particularly in the second half. I felt Georgia State was well on top in the first half and I think we were resolute by keeping the score 1-0 heading into halftime. We made some adjustments, not only in our tactics but also psychologically, and the guys came out better in the second half.

"We received goals off set pieces as well as good defense, pressure and solid defensive shape. That was important for a team like ours that really possesses good attacking players. Tonight's effort showed growth within our group.

"Blake Wilson was fantastic up front for us and Emil Laursen was both a great anchor for us on the back and then came to the front and scored the game-winner off the corner. That was tremendous for us. I also thought Torgeir Fjaer, our goalkeeper, played a great game, and the whole effort and work rate of the group was exceptional. I think it made a real difference late in the game as we kept getting stronger and stronger. That's not easy to do, especially in conference games."

NEXT UP
Georgia Southern returns home for a non-conference game against Gardner-Webb on Wednesday, Oct. 12. The Eagles and the Bulldogs will kick off at 7 p.m. at Eagle Field.

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