MOBILE, Ala. – The Jaguars got down early, but scored two unanswered goals to defeat Georgia Southern at home on Thursday night.
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The win was South Alabama's (8-0-2, 1-0-1) first conference win of the season and the 14
th straight win over the Eagles of Georgia Southern.
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The Jaguars and the Eagles battled for the first 15 minutes of action before Georgia Southern broke through in the 16
th minute with a goal from Bri Conley.
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South applied pressure and looked for the equalizer, which came in the 30
th minute, off a
Gabby Hollar goal and a
Gracie Wilson assist. Hollar leads the Jaguar squad with seven goals on the year.
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Each team was able to hold off the opposing attack before the half, going into halftime tied at one. After 45 minutes of action, the Eagles had seven shots while South Alabama had six.
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South Alabama took the lead in the 59
th minute when
Abby Jacobs nailed in a cross from
Monique Gray, the first of the season for Jacobs.Â
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The Jaguar defense showed its strength in the remaining 20 minutes of action, holding off the Eagle attack and securing the 2-1 win for the Jags.
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The South Alabama attack was led by Hollar and Jacobs, who totaled three shots each. Keeper
Jaidy Gutierrez Campos faced 12 shots and recorded six saves in the match.
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SCORING SUMMARY
QUOTABLE
Head Coach
Richard Moodie:
"The game of soccer is a crazy game because I thought we played really well on Sunday and created more chances, but then tonight we scored two goals. I thought it was an even game. I thought Georgia Southern did well, really proud of my group and the resilience we showed. To go one-nil down, and then to not panic and get back on top. We played excellent soccer. The goals we scored tonight were fantastic. The right player stepped up. We have a lot of quality on the squad and a lot of girls stepped up off the bench,
Bonnie Frost,
Rebecca Calderoni Martinez, Nate Nicolson, a lot of girls stepped up."
On the season:
"We've played an okay schedule. This was a big one for us tonight, conference wise and RPI wise. We are happy with where we are at as a team."
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Defender
Abby Jacobs:
On her go-ahead goal:
"It's just one of those goals you never practice. You're just there at the right time and you do the right thing. One thing that Coach Moodie always tells us is to do the right thing and goals will come. We kept having our wide players drive outside, then drive inside and play a hard ball across, we did exactly that.
Monique Gray played a fantastic ball and we did the right thing at the right time, and I am just glad I was the one in the box this time."
NOTABLES
- The win was the 14th straight over Georgia Southern, with the last loss coming in 1996.
- South Alabama extended its unbeaten streak at home to 19 games.Â
- Abby Jacobs scored her first goal of the season, moving her career total to five.
- Gracie Wilson is now tied for first in program history for career assists with 30.
- Gabby Hollar leads the team and conference with seven goals on the year.
- Abby Jacobs is the 11th Jag to score this season.
- The goal was the first game-winner for Jacobs in her career. Â
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UP NEXT
South Alabama hits the road for a match at Marshall on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT. Â Â
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FOLLOW THE JAGS
For complete coverage of South Alabama soccer, follow the Jags on social media @SouthAlabamaSOC (Twitter), /SouthAlabamaJaguars (Facebook), @southalabamasoccer (Instagram) or visit the official home of South Alabama athletics at usajaguars.com.
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