Brace by Southern Leads Dukes to Win Over Gardner-Webb

Saturday, October 8

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

4-6-1, 0-2-1

Gardner-Webb

5-3-2, 1-0-2

Gardner-Webb

James Madison

10/8/2022 11:18:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Photo Gallery

HARRISONBURG, Va. – After Gardner-Webb scored in the 19^th minute, James Madison redshirt junior Evan Southern scored goals in both halves to bring the Dukes back for a 2-1 victory in non-conference men's soccer on Saturday night at Sentara Park.

The Dukes snapped a three-match winless streak and improved to 4-6-1, while the Runnin' Bulldogs droppped to 5-3-2.

Redshirt sophomore Ethan Taylor took a team-high four shots, while Southern put all three of his shots on goal. Freshman Sebastian Conlon made seven saves in goal, one shy of tying his season-high.

How It Happened

The Runnin' Bulldogs applied the pressure early and often, taking the first seven shots of the match and ultimately led 12-4 in shots after the first 45 minutes.
Their sixth shot found pay dirt, as Aymane Sordo intercepted a pass and scored in the 19^th minute for a 1-0 lead.
JMU put its first shot of the night on goal, with Southern taking a shot in the 28^th minute.
The Dukes equalized in the 38^th minute, making it a 1-1 match. Redshirt junior Melker Anshelm sent a long pass to redshirt sophomore Demitri Turner who took a quick touch and handed the ball off to Southern to score his second goal of the season.
Conlon made a pair of 45^th-minute saves before the halftime break to keep it at one goal for each side.
Southern scored his second goal in the 62^nd minute, taking a pass from Kevin Larsson from in the box and landing it in the back of the net. It is the South Glastonbury, Conn. native's first multi-goal match since scoring a hat trick on Aug. 27, 2021 against Jefferson College as a member of Iowa Western CC.
The JMU defense held strong the remainder of the contest. After Gardner-Webb got off four shots in the first 15 minutes of the second half, it was held to only one shot in the last 30 minutes, which came in the 82^nd minute.

Game Notes

The three assists by JMU are the most in a match as a team since three against Mount St. Mary's on Oct. 6, 2021.
The match against The Mount is also the last time a Duke scored multiple goals in a single match, as Luca Erhardt also recorded a brace.
The Dukes improved to 4-4-1 when tied at halftime.

Quoting Head Coach Paul Zazenski
"We started slow going down a goal and the guys really responded. We didn't necessarily play our best tonight, but I think a lot of guys stepped up, fought, and got us back into the match and we were able to get that second goal and see out the win."

Up Next
The Dukes hit the road as they go to the nation's capital to face American on Tuesday, Oct. 11 for a 2 p.m. kickoff. That match will be streamed on ESPN+.