GAINESVILLE - Georgia Southern tallied a late goal and goalkeeper Sallie Newton tied a school record for saves as the Eagles fell to Florida, 3-1, on Thursday evening at Donald R. Dizney Stadium in Gainesville.

Florida moves to 4-7-2 overall with the win, while Georgia Southern moves to 4-11-1 overall, 1-1 in Spring competition. The Eagles will wrap up its Spring slate by taking on another SEC foe in Ole Miss on Saturday, March 27, at 2 p.m. in Oxford, Miss.

The Eagles' Diana Hilhorst tallied the first shot of the match, but Florida got started quickly by collecting the first goal of the match in the 17th minute from Madison Alexander. The Gators extended their lead to 2-0 in the 32nd minute on an unassisted tally by Tori Grambo, and would take that lead into halftime.

Florida held a 17-1 edge in shots at the break.

Georgia Southern withstood a flurry of second-half shots from the Gators, but senior goalkeeper Sallie Newton continued to turn away shots, tying the school record for saves in a match with a parry of a close-angle shot in the 86th minute - her 16th save of the night.

The Eagles would then notch their first goal in the 87th minute as a through ball from midfield by Marcela Montoya found its way to the foot of a sprinting Debra Ruiz. Her one-touch shot from the left side between a pair of defenders beat Florida goalkeeper Ashley Pietra right for her third goal of the season.

"We pushed numbers higher up the field, gambling," Georgia Southern Head Coach Chris Adams said. "We finally turned one over and started a counter attack. A through ball from Marcela, and Deb beat the keeper to the ball and slotted it underneath her. Nice to be able to execute against a high level of competition and she deserved the goal for her hard work." 

Florida would answer two minutes later with a goal by Parker Roberts for the final 3-1 scoreline.

"With three minutes left, it's a 2-1 match," Coach Adams said. "So it wasn't so much that we were being outshot, but we were being patient. I'm proud of the kids for sticking with our gameplan and seeing it out. I'm very impressed with how our kids kept battling. Even though we were down 2-0, we never quit."

Newton's 16 saves ties the school record set initially by Kari Gast against Appalachian State on October 3, 2003.

"Sallie was outstanding," Coach Adams said. "Typically you want your goalkeeper to save the ones they're supposed to. She did that tonight and a little more. She's a hard worker."

Florida finished the match with a 37-3 edge in shots. The Gators had an 11-1 edge in corner kicks as well.

"It was a good performance from us," Coach Adams said. "And a good test. All credit to Florida, they're tough to play against and they challenged us. Our goal was to be competitive and it was a game."