Offensive Onslaught Leads Dukes to Win Over Georgia Southern

Friday, October 14

Statesboro, Ga.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

5-6-2, 1-2-1

Georgia Southern

1-11-0, 0-5-0

James Madison

Georgia Southern

Offensive Onslaught Leads Dukes to Win Over Georgia Southern

10/14/2022 11:04:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

STATESBORO, Ga. – James Madison fired off a season-high tying 19 shots with freshman Cameron Arnold and redshirt sophomore Ethan Taylor scoring goals for a 3-0 win against Georgia Southern in Sun Belt Conference men's soccer Friday night at Eagle Field.

The Dukes move to 5-6-2 and earn the first conference win in the Sun Belt era to post a 1-2-1 record in league play. The Eagles fall to 1-11, 0-5 SBC.

Arnold led all shot takers with six shots while finding the back of the net on two of them. Freshman Sebastian Conlon started in goal and made two saves, combining with sophomore Drew Slack for the team's fourth shutout of the season.

How It Happened

The chances came early for the Dukes, as freshman Kevin Larsson put the first shot on goal in the fourth minute.
Taylor had his first of three shots in the 26^th minute, nearly getting JMU on the board as his shot hit the crossbar.
The Dukes were able to get one into the back of the net on their ninth shot of the first half, as Taylor passed to Arnold in the box before the Nettetal, Germany native scored the first goal of the night in the 44^th minute.
Arnold picked up in the second half right where in left before halftime giving the Dukes a 2-0 lead in the 54^th minute.
Less than six minutes later, the Dukes increased their lead to 3-0. Arnold brought the ball down into the box, firing a shot that looked like his third goal of the year. The shot hit the crossbar and went straight to Taylor who finished the chance for his first goal of the season.
The defense of JMU held strong the remainder of the game, not giving up a single shot in the final 45 minutes.

Game Notes

The Dukes put 11 shots on goal, including five of their eight second half shots.
The assist for Taylor was the first of his career and the second time in his career scoring more than three points in a single match. The first time was a two-goal performance at the College of Charleston in the spring 2021 season.
JMU had an 8-1 advantage in corner kicks and didn't allow one in the first half.
The Dukes have now scored multiple goals in three straight matches.

Quoting Head Coach Paul Zazenski
"It was a team win tonight and we are proud of the guys for stepping up and being ready to play from the start. It feels good to see a few goals go in as we did well to create multiple chances. Most importantly, we kept the shutout through solid team defending. Glad to get our first Sun Belt win in the books."

Up Next
The Dukes return home to host West Virginia at Sentara Park on Wednesday, Oct. 19. The match will be on ESPN+ and is scheduled for 7 p.m.