High Point Women’s Soccer Edged by Georgia, 1-0

• Senior Alex Hank made five saves while playing the first half. Junior Emily Lyon played the second half in goal and made three saves.
• Georgia went ahead on a goal in the 71st minute. HPU had a chance to tie in the 80th minute on a PK, but the shot went wide.
• High Point opens its home campaign on Friday, Aug. 25 against Ohio at 7 p.m.

ATHENS, Ga. – The High Point University women’s soccer team suffered its first loss of the season on Sunday afternoon, falling 1-0 at Georgia. Senior Alex Hank and junior Emily Lyon combined for eight saves in the contest.

“I am extremely proud of how our girls performed and executed today,” head coach Marty Beall said. “We executed our game plan to near-perfection on both sides. We had great spells of possession, but unfortunately Georgia got onto a second ball that we couldn’t get to in the box. Playing in this heat in this environment is a challenge and I’m proud of how our girls responded.”

Georgia (1-1-0) controlled a majority of the possession early in the contest, outshooting High Point 9-1 in the first half. However, Hank stood tall on numerous occasions with assistance from her back line. The senior has not allowed a goal in 135 minutes of action thus far this year. Sophomore Maggie Gruber had the Panthers (1-1-0) best chance in the first half on a feed from senior Michele Micciche in the 20th minute. Gruber had control inside the box, but her shot was saved by Jessie Harvey.

Following halftime, junior Emily Lyon took over in net and made multiple strong saves against an aggressive Georgia attack. The Bulldogs finally broke through in the 71st minute on a rebound from Katie MacGinnitie. Lyon made the initial save on a long send-in, but the rebound ricocheted to MacGinnitie, who snuck it past Lyon for the decisive tally.

High Point turned up the pressure following the goal, nearly equalizing in the 77th minute. Senior Becca Rolfe’s flip throw-in found senior Bri Jean-Charles in the box, but her shot was sent high. Three minutes later, Micciche was taken down in the box and was awarded a penalty kick. However, the attempt glanced off the left post, keeping Georgia in front.

The Panthers were outshot 20-5, including 9-3 in shots on goal. Georgia earned seven corner kicks to High Point’s one.

HPU returns to action on Friday, Aug. 25 at home against Ohio at 7 p.m. The home opener is part of a doubleheader with the men’s soccer team, who takes on Howard at 4 p.m.