No. 19 Georgia Heads to Texas Thursday

#19/NR Georgia (8-3-4, 4-1-2 SEC) at Texas (3-10-1, 1-6-0 SEC)
Date: Thursday, Oct. 16
Time: 8 p.m. EDT
Location: Austin, Texas
Site: Mike A. Myers Stadium (20,000)

MEDIA INFORMATION
Stream: SEC Network+ (Lincoln Rose, PxP / Jessica Stamp, Analyst)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
X: @UGASoccer
Instagram: @UGASoccer

Social Media: For complete information on Georgia soccer, follow the team on its social media channels via @UGASoccer on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

INSIDE THE SERIES
Overall: Texas leads 3-0-0
In Athens: Texas leads 2-0-0
In Austin: Texas leads 1-0-0
Last Meeting: Texas – W, 1-0 (Oct. 27, 2024 – Athens, Ga.)
Current Streak: L3
GF / GA: 0 / 6

QUICK KICKS
Dawgs on the Forty Acres
No. 19 Georgia continues its SEC stretch run with a road contest at Texas Thursday evening, the program's first trip to Austin since 2013. The Bulldogs are looking for their first victory against the Longhorns, as well as their first goal in the series, having been shutout in three previous meetings. Last season, Texas scored in the 60th minute to earn a 1-0 win in the SEC regular season finale in Athens. For Georgia, Thursday's match is the 18th all-time meeting against Texas head coach Ange Kelly, with Kelly holding a 13-4 record in previous matchups (11-4 at Tennessee; 2-0 at Texas).

Scoreboard Watching
With three matches remaining in the season, Georgia currently stands in fourth place with 14 points, just two behind conference co-leaders Arkansas and Tennessee. The Bulldogs are looking to earn a first round bye for the third time in Keidane McAlpine's tenure, and potentially, match or surpass the program best No. 2 seed earned in 2007 and 2023. Following matches against Texas and Auburn, Georgia will travel to Mississippi State for a fixture with potential seeding implications. The Bulldogs also now hold a head-to-head tiebreaker with Arkanas following last Friday's 1-0 victory.

Dawgs > Hawgs
No. 22 Georgia used a relentless attack and strong defensive effort to upset No. 6 Arkansas, 1-0, Friday evening at the Turner Soccer Complex. Friday's win was the first over a top 10 team since beating Arkansas in the 2023 SEC Championship, and the first home win over a top 10 opponent since beating No. 4 Texas A&M in 2015. The Bulldogs tallied a shot on goal in the opening minute, eventually outshooting the Razorbacks, 15-7, and dominating in corner kicks, 10-3. Freshman Mya Townes scored the lone goal of the evening in the 53rd minute, taking a pass from teammate Hailey Gordon and sliding it in the bottom right corner for the winner. Townes was later named SEC Co-Freshman of the Week for her efforts. Goalkeeper Hannah Folliard posted her fourth clean sheet of the season, as well as the seventh overall for Georgia.

Keep It 100 on the Land
Georgia's talented roster has been awarded with numerous individual honors, including five placements on TopDrawerSoccer's Top 100 Midseason Player and Freshmen list. Summer Denigan was ranked No. 19 on the top 100 player list, followed by teammate Assa Kante at No. 79. Denigan has scored nine goals to lead the team, while Kante has posted eight 90-minute efforts for a backline that has only surrendured 10 goals. On the freshman list, Maddy Herniter came in at No. 13, with Hannah Folliard (No. 42) and Ayda Pannell (No. 75) joining in. Herniter has started in all 13 appearances at center back, while Folliard has tallied four shutouts and Pannell notched an assist.

Second Half Surges
Georgia's offense has repeatedly come up clutch late in matches, with 18 of its 31 goals taking place in the second half of matches. Mya Townes' 53rd-minute winner against Arkansas last Friday marked the Bulldogs' eighth second-half goal in conference play. Additionally, seven of Georgia's second-half scores have occurred in the final 20 minutes of play, as did Kiera Staude's go-ahead score against LSU on Oct. 5.

Still Summertime in Athens
Redshirt junior midfielder Summer Denigan is in the midst of one of the greatest individual seasons in Georgia history. Through 15 matches, Denigan, who was named to the MAC Hermann Midseason Watch List, has tallied nine goals (third in the SEC) and an assist, while also ranking 10th nationally with four match-winning goals. In the Georgia record books, Denigan ranks fifth in winners with 10 in her career. Her converted penalty against Florida made her the 12th Bulldog to tally 20 career goals, while a 10th this season would make her the first player since Mollie Belisle to have double-digit scores in a season. With nine goals, she has already matched Margie Detrizio's team lead from last season.

Dawg Bites

The 2025 Bulldogs are one of only three teams in program history to record only one or fewer losses in their first seven matches of SEC play. The 2007 team began its campaign with a 5-1-1 mark, while the 2010 team opened at 4-0-3.
Georgia has found tremendous success away from home in the Keidane McAlpine era, earning a result in 15 of 18 SEC regular season road matches over four seasons. Prior to a 2-0 loss at Tennessee on Oct. 2, the Bulldogs had compiled a program record-tying nine match unbeaten streak in true road matches dating back to September 2024.
Freshman forward Ava Stack is currently camping with the Mexican U-17 national team in preparation for the FIFA U17 Women's World Cup, beginning October 17 in Morocco.
With one more assist, Cate Hardin would become the first Bulldog with five or more assists in conference play since Randi-Lynn Bruso and Kelly Whitaker in 2006.
Georgia has posted two five-match unbeaten streaks this season, joining the 2022 campaign as the only seasons in program history with two separate 5+ stretches.
Georgia is one of only four P4 programs to feature two 17-year-old players: goalkeeper Hannah Folliard and forward Ava Stack.
Under Keidane McAlpine, Georgia has continued to raise the program's profile and achieve new heights of success, highlighted by the 2023 SEC Tournament championship and NCAA Sweet 16 appearance. The Bulldogs have won SEC Tournament matches for three straight seasons for the first time in program history and hosted NCAA First Round matches in three straight years for the first time. The Bulldogs have also finished unbeaten on the road in SEC play in both 2022 and 2024.
The Bulldogs' increased success has expanded the recruiting footprint of the program, resulting in a roster full of geographic diversity in 2025. This season's team features players from 13 different states and three nations, the largest number of states represented in program history. The Dawgs still feature 11 players from Georgia, one of the country's deepest talent pools.
Graduate defender Laila Booker, who missed a month earlier this season due to injury, turned in a 90-minute effort against Arkansas last Friday. Including her career at Yale, Booker has played a full match on 39 occasions, including a nine-match streaking stretching from the end of the 2023 season to the start of 2024.

Up Next
No. 19 Georgia hosts Auburn in its regular season home finale on Sunday, Oct. 19 at 5 p.m. at the Turner Soccer Complex. Admission is free for all spectators, and the match will air live on SEC Network. The Bulldogs will then close out the regular season at Mississippi State on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 3 p.m. in Starkville.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Laila Booker

Summer Denigan

Margie Detrizio

Hannah Folliard

Hailey Gordon

Cate Hardin

Maddy Herniter

Assa Kante

Ayda Pannell

Ava Stack

Kiera Staude

Mya Townes

University of Georgia Athletics