Georgia Soccer Tops No. 2 Duke in Exhibition Opener

ATHENS, Ga. – In the first exhibition match of the 2022 season, the University of Georgia soccer team made a statement with a 2-1 victory over No. 2 Duke Monday evening at Turner Soccer Stadium.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said head coach Keidane McAlpine following the match. “It’s been a long eight months. It’s fun to finally get out there and play somebody else. The spring is nice, but to have the feel of the fall, the new beginnings, getting our new players in—it’s really exciting. And the energy and the effort from the fans. We’ve still got a lot of work to do. This is far from the best game we’ve played, but this is a good place to start.”

Monday’s match was played with three 30-minutes periods, with the Bulldogs posting two goals in a five-minute span during the second period. In the 48th minute, sophomore Ellie Gilbert knocked in a header off a corner kick by graduate Abby Boyan to give Georgia the lead. Four minutes later, Boyan took advantage of a Duke yellow card in the box to convert a penalty kick for a 2-0 lead.

“It was great,” said Gilbert. “Honestly, the ball coming at me was perfect, and our team as a whole played awesome. I was really happy I could chip in with the goal, but again, it was a team effort. I’m really happy about that.”

In the first period, the Blue Devils nearly opened the scoring, but sophomore goalkeeper Liz Beardsley made a diving double save to keep them off the board. Beardsley played nearly the entirety of the first two periods before being relieved by junior Lauren Swoopes, and later, freshman Jordan Brown.

“I wanted to keep it out of the net—that’s always the goal for me,” said Beardsley. “The first save didn’t quite go out of bounds like I wanted it to, so I had to scramble back across the goal to deal with what was given.”

Duke eventually cut the deficit in the 82nd minute with a goal from graduate Mackenzie Pluck off an assist from senior Julia Burnell. The Blue Devils made one last charge in the final moments, but the Bulldog defense held firm and preserved the victory.

Georgia continues its exhibition season against Furman on Saturday, Aug. 13 at 7 p.m. at Turner Soccer Complex. Admission is free for all fans. The match will not be streamed.

For complete information on Georgia soccer, follow the team on its social media channels via @UGASoccer on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

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