STATESBORO, Ga.- The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles conceded an early goal and never found the equalizer, eventually falling 2-0 to Georgia Southern Sunday afternoon on the road in the Peach State.
The Eagles looked good early on, putting immediate pressure on Georgia Southern with a shot on goal from
Ryleigh Acosta less than a minute after the opening whistle. Another deep run moments later resulted in a shot off the head of
Kate Friday, but it was off the mark and the game remained scoreless through the first eight minutes.
Georgia Southern owned the next 10 minutes, getting into the box for a chance in the ninth minute before
Lily Borders cut out an Eagle run. But one minute later they weren't so lucky as a shot to the lower 90 found the back of the net to give Georgia Southern a 1-0 lead 10 minutes in.
FGCU continued to face pressure as Georgia Southern earned three corners in a 2:11 span, but the Eagles defense stood tall and kept it a one goal game.
Taylor Latini got off a good strike from just outside the box in the 20
th minute, but it was just off the mark as it slid by the Georgia Southern keeper in an attempt to tie the game up at one. FGCU kept the ball in the attacking third after the hydration break, getting chances from
Kaitlin Gabelman and
Sarah Greiner inside the box before
Lexie Bennett put a shot of her own on target before being saved by the Eagles keeper to keep it a 1-0 game in favor of Georgia Southern with 10 minutes remaining in the half.
In off the FGCU bench,
Megan Morgan gave the Eagles some life, winning a one on one battle on the left wing before lofting a shot towards goal from 30 yards out, but the attempt clanged off the crossbar and the Blue and Green were forced to settle for a 1-0 deficit as they went to the locker room at the half.
Georgia Southern had a grade a chance right off the bat as the second half got underway, but
Madara Bome made a big save for the Eagles from point blank range to keep FGCU in it.
Avery White found Latini on a cross for a good chance in the box in the 50
th minute but the shot sailed high before
Tessa Brooks powered a left footed chance wide three minutes later for FGCU. A third opportunity for FGCU came as Acosta flicked a ball to
Brooke Viccars for a shot at the top of the box, but it also sailed high as it remained a 1-0 game in favor of Georgia Southern into the 60
th minute.
The missed chances for FGCU finally came back to bite them in the 63
rd minute as Georgia Southern played a long service into the box that connected with a header that trickled into the back of the net to put the Eagles up 2-0 with 27 minutes remaining in the contest.
Playing catch up, FGCU didn't threaten again until the closing moments, going nearly 30 minutes without a shot towards the Georgia Southern goal until
Aleah Douglass came off the bench for a shot on in the 89
th minute, but it was saved by the Eagles keeper and FGCU wouldn't get another chance as they fell 2-0.
FGCU put 17 shots towards net in the defeat, but only five found their mark on goal. 12 different players recorded a shot including Greiner who led the Eagles with three shots for the second consecutive game.
The Eagles fall to 0-1-1 on the year with the loss while Georgia Southern picks up their second straight win over an ASUN foe to equal their win total from the entire 2025 season at 2-0-0.
FGCU will look to regroup before hitting the road again on Thursday for a pair of games in Louisiana, taking on Southern Thursday at 7 p.m. before battling #16 LSU in Baton Rouge Sunday at 2 p.m..
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