University of Georgia Athletics
Brown, Defense Delivered Shutout In Opener
August 16, 2024 | Soccer, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
There were no goals scored in No. 14 Georgia's season-opening match against No. 7 Pittsburgh on Thursday night at the Turner Soccer Complex, but there was still plenty of action. And Bulldogs goalkeeper Jordan Brown saw a lot of it.
"I was cramping a little but it's the first game back and you've got to get back in the grove," Brown said afterward, drenched in sweat from head to toe. "I feel good. I feel like I helped the team, did what I could, and I think it was a good performance."
That it was.
"J.B. is legit," Georgia coach Keidane McAlpine said.
In the 0-0 draw, the Panthers attempted 18 shots, and Brown made five saves. But she was a lot busier than that. Pitt had the ball deep in Georgia territory often, particularly in the second half, and Brown and the Bulldog defenders had to fight off wave after wave of attacks.
"I think we came out strong," defender Cate Hardin said of the overall performance. "We worked really well together right off the bat. We had a few moments where we were a little slow, but ultimately we were pretty together as a team, and I think we can really build on what we did today."
Of Brown's performance in goal, Hardin said: "She's the best. She's a brick wall — no one can get past her."
That was true Thursday, and Pitt tried its best all the way to the end. Brown made her final save with 74 seconds remaining to secure her 12th career shutout.
"I kept reminding myself: focus, lock in, keep doing what you're doing, and just maintain that shutout," Brown said.
Georgia finished with 10 shots, eight fewer than Pitt, but the Bulldogs forced Pitt goalkeeper Ellie Breech to make saves on four of them. And maybe the Bulldogs' best scoring chance of the game, by Washington State transfer Margie Detrizio, on an attack with about 20 minutes left in the first half, hit the crossbar and bounced away.
Pitt and Georgia each had a couple of good scoring chances that were either saved or the shot was just off the mark. It was two good teams battling for 90 minutes, McAlpine said, and the tie "was probably the fair result, at the end." Georgia won the SEC tournament last season and advanced to the third round of the NCAA tournament, losing on penalty kicks, while Pitt had its best season ever, advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals.
"I'll take an early result like that against a quality opponent," he said. adding that offensively the Bulldogs need to execute a little better when they create scoring chances. "We're old enough to know how to do that, and we've got to be better," he said.
McAlpine praised the defense for handling well some schematic curveballs that Pitt threw at it.
"They challenged us in ways we haven't seen in a while," McAlpine said of the Panthers, "and it was a great test for all of our back line and even our holding mids (midfielders) to try to figure that piece out. I thought as the game went along, you saw us adjust better."
Georgia's defensive performance was one of several things that had McAlpine smiling after the game. Another was the return of two key players from serious knee injuries: Dasia Torbert and Ellie Gilbert.
Torbert, who played two seasons at UCLA before transferring to Georgia before the 2022 season, sustained her injury on Sept. 16, 2022, in a game at Texas A&M. She was out all of last season, and Thursday's opener was her first game back after a very long journey to get back to full health.
"She went through it, and for her to be back today, to give us that kind of effort, those kinds of minutes, really, really happy for her," McAlpine said. "She earned it, she deserved it, and now she's been in it and she's only going to get better from here."
Gilbert, a senior defender who has been a starter throughout her career, was back in the lineup Thursday after missing the final nine games of last season, including the Bulldogs' great postseason run, with her knee injury. She is still playing on a minutes restriction, but she was maybe the most effective Bulldog on the field in the first half. She helped anchor Georgia's back line and stifle any attacks that came her way.
"Ellie's a machine," McAlpine said with a laugh. "The work that she put in the first two years (at Georgia after McAlpine was hired) was unbelievable. She equally put in that kind of work to get back. ... We are blessed to have her, but she put it (the work) in."
The Bulldogs will get another stiff early-season test next Thursday when they play at No. 8 North Carolina.
Staff Writer
There were no goals scored in No. 14 Georgia's season-opening match against No. 7 Pittsburgh on Thursday night at the Turner Soccer Complex, but there was still plenty of action. And Bulldogs goalkeeper Jordan Brown saw a lot of it.
"I was cramping a little but it's the first game back and you've got to get back in the grove," Brown said afterward, drenched in sweat from head to toe. "I feel good. I feel like I helped the team, did what I could, and I think it was a good performance."
That it was.
"J.B. is legit," Georgia coach Keidane McAlpine said.
In the 0-0 draw, the Panthers attempted 18 shots, and Brown made five saves. But she was a lot busier than that. Pitt had the ball deep in Georgia territory often, particularly in the second half, and Brown and the Bulldog defenders had to fight off wave after wave of attacks.
"I think we came out strong," defender Cate Hardin said of the overall performance. "We worked really well together right off the bat. We had a few moments where we were a little slow, but ultimately we were pretty together as a team, and I think we can really build on what we did today."
Of Brown's performance in goal, Hardin said: "She's the best. She's a brick wall — no one can get past her."
That was true Thursday, and Pitt tried its best all the way to the end. Brown made her final save with 74 seconds remaining to secure her 12th career shutout.
"I kept reminding myself: focus, lock in, keep doing what you're doing, and just maintain that shutout," Brown said.
Georgia finished with 10 shots, eight fewer than Pitt, but the Bulldogs forced Pitt goalkeeper Ellie Breech to make saves on four of them. And maybe the Bulldogs' best scoring chance of the game, by Washington State transfer Margie Detrizio, on an attack with about 20 minutes left in the first half, hit the crossbar and bounced away.
Pitt and Georgia each had a couple of good scoring chances that were either saved or the shot was just off the mark. It was two good teams battling for 90 minutes, McAlpine said, and the tie "was probably the fair result, at the end." Georgia won the SEC tournament last season and advanced to the third round of the NCAA tournament, losing on penalty kicks, while Pitt had its best season ever, advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals.
"I'll take an early result like that against a quality opponent," he said. adding that offensively the Bulldogs need to execute a little better when they create scoring chances. "We're old enough to know how to do that, and we've got to be better," he said.
McAlpine praised the defense for handling well some schematic curveballs that Pitt threw at it.
"They challenged us in ways we haven't seen in a while," McAlpine said of the Panthers, "and it was a great test for all of our back line and even our holding mids (midfielders) to try to figure that piece out. I thought as the game went along, you saw us adjust better."
Georgia's defensive performance was one of several things that had McAlpine smiling after the game. Another was the return of two key players from serious knee injuries: Dasia Torbert and Ellie Gilbert.
Torbert, who played two seasons at UCLA before transferring to Georgia before the 2022 season, sustained her injury on Sept. 16, 2022, in a game at Texas A&M. She was out all of last season, and Thursday's opener was her first game back after a very long journey to get back to full health.
"She went through it, and for her to be back today, to give us that kind of effort, those kinds of minutes, really, really happy for her," McAlpine said. "She earned it, she deserved it, and now she's been in it and she's only going to get better from here."
Gilbert, a senior defender who has been a starter throughout her career, was back in the lineup Thursday after missing the final nine games of last season, including the Bulldogs' great postseason run, with her knee injury. She is still playing on a minutes restriction, but she was maybe the most effective Bulldog on the field in the first half. She helped anchor Georgia's back line and stifle any attacks that came her way.
"Ellie's a machine," McAlpine said with a laugh. "The work that she put in the first two years (at Georgia after McAlpine was hired) was unbelievable. She equally put in that kind of work to get back. ... We are blessed to have her, but she put it (the work) in."
The Bulldogs will get another stiff early-season test next Thursday when they play at No. 8 North Carolina.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
Players Mentioned
Goalkeeper
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Forward
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Midfielder/Defender
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Defender
/ Soccer
Midfielder/Forward
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