Men's Soccer | 9/20/2016 11:05:00 AM
NEW ORLEANS, La. – Georgia Southern men's soccer players
Emil Laursen and
Blake Wilson have swept the weekly awards from the Sun Belt Conference office after leading the Eagles to a 1-1 record last week, including a 2-1 win over Mercer. Laursen was named the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Student-Athlete of the Week while Wilson picked up Sun Belt Conference Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week honors.
Georgia Southern started the week on the road at South Carolina in a game that was nationally-televised on the SEC Network+. The Eagles led the Gamecocks for much of the game, but ultimately fell 2-1 late in the first overtime period despite strong play from both the defense and offense. GS bounced back on Saturday in a big way with a 2-1 win over a strong Mercer team that entered the weekend 5-1, including wins over South Carolina and Jacksonville. The win over the Bears broke a string of seven straight wins in the series by Mercer. It was the first win in the series by Georgia Southern since 2006 and the first win in Macon for GS since 2005.
Laursen, a sophomore from Silkeborg, Denmark, was a key defensive component in the Eagles' 1-1 record last week, leading the defense as Georgia Southern took on South Carolina in an overtime thriller before defeating a strong Mercer team. The 6-1 defender never left the pitch in both games, playing 188 total minutes, including 98 in the game at South Carolina. Laursen and the Eagles withstood a barrage of 37 total shots – 18 on goal – between the two games, but the defense stood strong and recorded nine blocked shots compared to conceding just three goals.
The Eagle defense and Laursen started the week by holding the Gamecocks scoreless for 84 minutes before conceding a game-tying goal in the 85
th minute. SC went on to score the game-winner just over seven minutes into the first overtime period despite strong play by the Eagles that saw GS block eight of the Gamecocks' 27 shots. On Saturday, Laursen and the back row helped seal a 2-1 win over Mercer despite giving up an early goal. The Eagle defense bounced back and held the Bears scoreless for over 88 minutes, withstanding eight more shots and recording one block en route to the win.
On offense, Wilson scored all three of Georgia Southern's goals, including his first career game-winner against Mercer on Saturday, September 17. The Eagle offense kept the pressure on both South Carolina and Mercer, recording 19 total shots between the two games, including 10 on goal. Wilson, a forward from Tampa, Florida, brought his season goal total up to six for the year and his season point total up to 12, both good enough for second in the league. Wilson is in the top-40 nationally in four categories, including top-15 in two. He is currently tied for ninth nationally with six goals, tied for 13
th with 0.86 goal per game, tied for 29
th with 1.71 points per game and tied for 38
th with 1.71 shots on goal per game.
Wilson played 130 minutes between the two games, including 67 against South Carolina. For the week, the 6-0 forward took eight shots and shot .375, including shooting .667 in the win over Mercer. Just 6:45 into the South Carolina game, Wilson gave the Eagles the lead with a goal off a shot from 10 yards out that came when he corralled in a deflected ball. Georgia Southern then held the lead until the 85
th minute when SC tied the game at 1-1. SC went on to win 2-1 in the first overtime despite several good looks by Wilson and the Eagles' offense. On Saturday, Wilson and Georgia Southern bounced back in a big way and earned a 2-1 victory over a strong Mercer team. Despite falling behind 1-0 just a minute and a half into the game, Wilson came charging back for Georgia Southern as he scored the equalizer nearly 30 seconds later off an assist from
Adam Abdellaoui. Wilson would go on to find the back of the net again in the 63
rd minute as he recorded his first game-winner of the season and lifted Georgia Southern to the 2-1 win.
Georgia Southern wraps up a three-game road swing tonight against Duke in Durham, North Carolina. The game between the Eagles and the Blue Devils will be nationally-televised on the ACC Network Extra with kickoff slated for 7 p.m. The Eagles return home on Saturday, Sept. 24 for a game against North Florida at Eagle Field. The game against the Ospreys is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channelsÂ
facebook.com/GSAthletics, twitter.com/GSAthletics, iOS app Georgia Southern Eagles and Android app Eagles GATA. Fans can purchase tickets to Georgia Southern Athletics events by visiting GSEagles.com/Tickets.
