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Friday, November 10
Athens, Ga.
4:00 PM ET
Liberty University
16-3-1, 5-2-1
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Georgia
12-4-5, 4-3-3
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F
Liberty
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Georgia
1
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Liberty Falls to No. 4 Georgia 2-1 in First Round of NCAA Tournament
11/10/2023 8:08:00 PM | Women's Soccer
ATHENS, Ga. – The Liberty women's soccer program saw its season come to an end on Friday with a hard-fought 2-1 loss to host and No. 4 seed Georgia in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Womens' Soccer Championship.
Liberty (16-3-1), the Conference USA champions, were facing off against the SEC Champion Georgia Bulldogs (12-4-5) in the program's eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
The Lady Flames enjoyed a historic season that saw the Liberty earn an 11-0 record to begin the campaign, own a 24-match unbeaten streak dating back to 2022, match the program's single-season win record and secure its eighth conference championship in program history.
The match was the first played in the tournament, opening all games in the 2023 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship.
Liberty forward Ivy Garner created an early chance for Liberty, beating her defender to the end line. Garner got her shot off directly at the Bulldogs' keeper Jordan Brown who stopped the ball which nearly deflected into the goal but bounced off the post.
Georgia got on the board with the tournament's first goal off a score from the Bulldogs' Hannah White. Bethune Croix found White slashing across the box as White put the ball past Liberty's keeper Ainsley Leja and two charging defenders.
Liberty went into the half down one but came out hot to begin the second half. The Lady Flames created another early chance when Garner came off the end line with a shot. Brown made the save, was unable to collect the rebound but there was no Lady Flame near to capitalize.
Garner secured the equalizing goal with under 20 minutes left in the second half. Garner again made it to the end line and used good patience to find her opening. Once Garner saw her lane, she blasted a shot by Brown who did not move a muscle in response.
Scoring Summary
24' – Georgia – Hannah White (Croix Bethune)
35' – Liberty – Ivy Garner
85' – Georgia – Kiera Staude (Croix Bethune)
Lady Flames News & Notes
Liberty (16-3-1), the Conference USA champions, were facing off against the SEC Champion Georgia Bulldogs (12-4-5) in the program's eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
The Lady Flames enjoyed a historic season that saw the Liberty earn an 11-0 record to begin the campaign, own a 24-match unbeaten streak dating back to 2022, match the program's single-season win record and secure its eighth conference championship in program history.
The match was the first played in the tournament, opening all games in the 2023 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship.
Liberty forward Ivy Garner created an early chance for Liberty, beating her defender to the end line. Garner got her shot off directly at the Bulldogs' keeper Jordan Brown who stopped the ball which nearly deflected into the goal but bounced off the post.
Georgia got on the board with the tournament's first goal off a score from the Bulldogs' Hannah White. Bethune Croix found White slashing across the box as White put the ball past Liberty's keeper Ainsley Leja and two charging defenders.
Liberty went into the half down one but came out hot to begin the second half. The Lady Flames created another early chance when Garner came off the end line with a shot. Brown made the save, was unable to collect the rebound but there was no Lady Flame near to capitalize.
Garner secured the equalizing goal with under 20 minutes left in the second half. Garner again made it to the end line and used good patience to find her opening. Once Garner saw her lane, she blasted a shot by Brown who did not move a muscle in response.
With just over five minutes left, Kiera Staude found the back of the net to regain the lead for the home team. Staude capitalized off strong ball movement in the attacking zone, scoring the first goal of her career.It. Is. Tied.
— Liberty Women's Soccer (@LibertyWSoccer) November 10, 2023
Ivy Garner bangs in her sixth goal of the season with under 20 minutes left in the half.
Liberty 1 | No. 4 Georgia 1 pic.twitter.com/A0IqQXpCk3
Scoring Summary
24' – Georgia – Hannah White (Croix Bethune)
35' – Liberty – Ivy Garner
85' – Georgia – Kiera Staude (Croix Bethune)
Lady Flames News & Notes
- Georgia outshot Liberty in total shots 29-4 and shots on goal, 11-4. It was the first time this season that Liberty has been outshot in a game.
- Garner recorded all four of Liberty's shots. Along with her score, all Garner's shots were on goal.
- Leja made a season-high nine saves on Friday. The keeper finishes the season with a 0.60 goals-against average (GAA) and a .829 save percentage. She also tied her program record with 10 shutouts in a season, matching her 2022 season.
- Leja breaks her previous program record, 0.62 save percentage that she set in 2022.
- Four Lady Flames, Leja, Bridie Herman, Lena James, Rebekah Earnest and Sallie Garner, all played a full 90 minutes on Friday.
- Leja was in goal for every minute of 2023, logging 1800 minutes in 2023.
- Rachel DeRuby ends the season with a team-leading nine goals and 22 points.
- Four Lady Flames, Herman, DeRuby, Garner and Allison Hansford finish the 2023 season tied for the team lead with four assists apiece.
- When she stepped on the pitch on Friday, Rebekah Earnest set a new program record with 87 career games played. Earnest passed Jaime Bouffard (2012-15) for the program record.
- Friday's game was just the second match this season where Liberty allowed more than one goal in a game. New Mexico scored twice in a 2-0 road win over Liberty on Sept. 30.
- Liberty tied a program record with 16 wins this season. The Lady Flames had a 16-6-1 season in 2013 under head coach Jessica Hain.
- The Lady Flames end the 2023 season with a 6-2 home mark and a 9-1-1 road record.
Team Stats
LIB
UGA
Goals
1
2
Shots
4
29
Shots on Goal
4
11
Saves
9
3
Corners
1
9
Fouls
5
7
Scoring Plays
Hannah White (6)
Assisted By: Croix Bethune
GOAL by UGA White, Hannah Assist by Bethune, Croix.
23:21
Ivy Garner (6)
GOAL by LIB Garner, Ivy.
71:26
Kiera Staude (1)
Assisted By: Croix Bethune
GOAL by UGA Staude, Kiera Assist by Bethune, Croix.
84:37
Game Leaders
Players
fwd
Shots
3
SOG
3
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
MF
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's SoccerF
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
F
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
D
/ Women's Soccer
GK
/ Women's Soccer
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