ATLANTA – In front of a record crowd, the Georgia State men's soccer team defeated in-state rival Georgia Southern 1-0 in a crucial conference showdown on Senior Night at the GSU Soccer Complex Saturday. Rashid Alarape scored the match-winning goal in the 23rd minute.

• GSU finishes the regular season with an 8-9-0 record and a 3-2-0 Sun Belt mark in the team's first season back in the conference.
• With the win, the Panthers clinched the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye in the Sun Belt Conference Championship.
• Georgia State will face Georgia Southern again in the semifinals of the tournament on Friday, Nov. 14. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. in Statesboro, Ga.

In the first half GSU went on the attack early in the 2nd minute but Amiri Abraham's header was too high. Georgia Southern then had a pair of chances in the 10th and 11th minutes but one shot was blocked and the other was saved by Panther goalkeeper CJ Cochran.

Georgia State then had a pair of chances to grab the lead over the next 10 minutes.

• First Eddie Wilding's low shot was just wide of the left post in the 15th minute.
• Then in the 20th minute, Aaron Jones fired a dangerous free kick around the wall but it too curved wide of the left post.

In the 22nd minute, David Vargas Masis responded with a great chance for the Eagles but his shot deflected off the crossbar.

Less than one minute later Alarape scored his fourth goal of the season to give GSU a 1-0 lead after 23 minutes.

• Wilding picked out Alarape with a perfect cross to the far post.
• The freshman forward then outjumped his marker and found the top right-corner with a powerful leaping header.

In the 27th minute, Wilding had an opportunity to double the Panthers' advantage but his header drifted wide of the left post. Two minutes later, Niklas Kivinen then tried his luck from distance but his show was off target.

After a trio of off-target chances, Ali Elkhalil fired a low shot on goal but Eagle keeper Jack Falle made a diving save to keep it a one-goal match. Georgia Southern had one final shot in the 44th minute but it was off target.

• After 45 minutes, GSU led 1-0 and held a 10-4 shot advantage.
• The Panthers also took three of four corner kicks in the first half.

Georgia State had the first two shots of the second half but neither was on goal. Wilding threatened again in the 59th minute but his effort was saved by Falle.

The fouls began to mount over the next 20 minutes and four yellow cards were shown. Georgia Southern only managed one shot over that period and it was off target. The Eagles had three final chances over the last five minutes of the match but none tested Cochran.

Georgia State secured its second-straight shutout victory as the team builds momentum ahead of the Sun Belt Conference Championship which begins next week.

• Over 90 minutes GSU outshot Georgia Southern 16-9 and the Panthers took more corners (5-2).
• 31 total fouls were called, including 22 in the second half.
• Six total yellow cards were shown which tied a season high.