STATESBORO, Ga.  – Friday night in Atlanta the Eagles and Panthers would open up the 2018 conference portion of their seasons, with the Eagles defeating the Panthers 2-0. The Blue and White started out hot, posting five shots in the first half and forcing Lydia Fraga to make two saves before the first 45 were complete. 

Opportunities began to open for the Eagles after half and the Blue and White would strike first, as Maddie Klintworth stole a pass and walked to the center of the penalty area to finish far post. The Eagles led by one for a matter of 20 minutes, before Junique Rodriguez joined the party taking an excellent long ball pass from Vala Kristin Theodorsdottir and beating the keeper. 

Jocelyn Springer stood on her head all night long making seven saves and collecting her second clean-sheet of the season. The Eagles now post three shutouts this season and have won all three games that they have scored in. The victory improves the Eagles to 3-5-0 on the season and also was the second in the last 15 meetings with the Panthers. With Sunday's match being rescheduled the Eagles will now return home to rest for Appalachian State next Sunday.

MATCH FACTS
Georgia State (2-6-1) - 0
Georgia Southern (3-5-0) – 2

SCORING
51' - GS - Maddie Klintworth (1) Tyler Gordon
71' - GS - Junique Rodriguez (1) Vala Kristin Theodorsdottir

NOTES
- Maddie Klintworth and Junique Rodriguez scored their first goals of the season in the second half to lift the Eagles over the Panthers
- Eagles collected the first rivalry point Friday evening in the Southern vs. State series
- Tonight's victory was only the second time in the last 15 meetings that the Eagles defeated the Panthers
- The Eagles are 3-0 when scoring this season and tonight marked the first time all season that the Eagles scored multiple goals
- Jocelyn Springer added her second clean-sheet of the season making seven saves on the night

WHAT HEAD COACH BRIAN DUNLEAVY SAID
"Great result for our players, they deserved to win, they had an excellent balance of intensity and composure for the full 90 minutes. That's crucial in an emotional match up like this. Defensively we were pretty solid, Georgia State's forwards are dynamic and can be a real handful, but our back four and Jocelyn were outstanding. We got forward with a real purpose, we were able to score one from a counter attack and the other from good build up play. We created chances in a variety of ways which is a good sign for us. I'm proud of our team right now, they've been playing some really good soccer in the buildup to this one."
 
NEXT UP
The Eagles will have the rest of the weekend off after rescheduling their match against Louisiana. They will be back in action next Sunday against Appalachian State at 1:00 PM.