The Georgia Southern men’s soccer team tied Georgia State after taking the Panthers into double overtime, making them 1-0-1 in the Sun Belt conference.

Here are some key takeaways from the game:

There needs to be more ball control and more across-the-field movement

Too many times you would see the Eagles either playing only the right or left side of the field, making their offensive attack easy to defend. Another disadvantage of playing tunnel vision is the field becomes compressed, leaving less room to actually control the ball and giving more opportunity for the defense to pressure the ball and regain possession.

Keep shooting

The Eagles do a great job of taking shot after shot, even if it’s not the best shot or from the best angle. The positive takeaway? You keep shooting shot after shot and pressuring the goal keeper. They’re bound to make a mistake at some point and the ball could find its way to the back of the net.

There needs to be a better sense of confidence and comfort on the field

Too many times it was obvious that the Eagles were becoming panicked after GSU scored in the second half. Their style of play became frantic, and the Panthers were able to control most of the possession because the Eagles were playing kickball rather than possessing, controlling and distributing the ball. 

We need to keep in mind that they’re a young team

The year’s soccer team is mainly made up of freshmen and sophomores, whereas most college teams have more juniors and seniors. They’re a young team. They’re still getting used to each other and the level of competition that’s presented while playing D1 soccer.

Considering how tough their schedule has been, playing more than one nationally ranked team and holding them to close games, the Eagles have more than proved that they have talent and skill that can be further developed to create an unstoppable team in the coming seasons.

Kaitlin Sells, The George-Anne Assistant Sports Editor, gasports@georgiasouthern.edu