Men’s Soccer Set For Home Opener Wednesday with UAB

Match to be played at Center Parc Stadium

Aris Briggs currently leads the Sun Belt Conference with two goals.

ATLANTA – Following a pair of impressive road matches victories to open the season, the Georgia State men's soccer team will return home and face UAB on Wednesday night at 6 p.m., at Center Parc Stadium.

Georgia State (2-0) opened the season with wins at Mercer and South Carolina and will now return home for three-straight matches over a seven-day period. UAB (1-1) comes in having split a pair of matches against Sun Belt Conference foes to open the year, including a 3-2 loss to Georgia Southern on Saturday night.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, fans will be required to wear masks. Admission and parking for the match at Center Parc Stadium is free. Fans will be requested to sit in the east side stands.

THE MATCHUP

Following two road matches to start the season, Georgia State returns home for the first of three-straight home contests facing UAB.
Georgia State leads the all-time series with the Blazers 13-9-1, including a 7-5 mark at home.
The Panthers earned a 4-2 win over UAB last year as Aris Briggs recorded a hat trick with three goals including two in the first half.
UAB has split a pair of matches against Sun Belt opponents this year, earning a 3-2 win at Central Arkansas to open the season before falling 3-2 at Georgia Southern on Saturday.
Wednesday night's game marks the second of three match-ups for GSU against Conference USA schools this fall. The Panthers will also travel to face UAB on Oct. 13.

THE LATEST

Georgia State scored a 3-1 win at South Carolina last Thursday night. The victory snapped a 42-year/12-match losing streak to the Gamecocks.
In Georgia State's first two matches, four different players have scored goals for the Panthers. Aris Briggs scored both goals against Mercer, while Matthew Fearnley, Jeryn Hodge, and Simon Carlson scored the goals against South Carolina.
Georgia State was named the TopDrawerSoccer.com National Team of the Week on Sept. 21, following the Panthers 2-1 season opening win over Mercer.
Senior forward Aris Briggs took home a trophy case of hardware in Week 1 earning three awards. He scored two goals against Mercer including a header in the 81st minute that proved to be the game winner. For his efforts, he earned the following awards.
- Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week
- United Soccer Coaches Players of the Week
- TopDrawerSoccer.com Player of the Week
Briggs, along with Alex Henderson and Justin Guest earned TopDrawerSoccer.com Team of the Week recognition, while senior Paul Tyson earned honorable mention honors.
Georgia State is undefeated through two matches for a second-straight year. The Panthers started last season unbeaten in their first nine matches - a school record.

QUICK HITS

Georgia State opened last season undefeated through nine matches (6-0-3 record), surpassing the previous school record of seven games without a loss to start a season set in 1967.
Senior forward Aris Briggs finished last season with 16 goals and one assist for 33 total points. His 16 goals ranked seventh among all players in Division I men's soccer and ranked tied for ninth in the GSU record book for goals scored in a single season. He led the Sun Belt in total points (33), points per game (1.65), goals (16), goals per game (0.80), and was tied for first with six game-winning goals.
The Panthers turn six starters from last season while welcoming nine newcomers to the program this year.
Georgia State has appeared in five-straight Sun Belt Conference Tournament Championship Games, last earning the title in 2018 before appearing in the NCAA Tournament.

SUN BELT WEEKLY HONORS

Georgia State seniors Aris Briggs and Paul Tyson earned Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week honors on Sept. 23, following a 2-1 win over Mercer to start the season. Briggs finished with two goals, while Tyson made seven saves keeping the Bears off the scoreboard in the first half. It marked the second time that Briggs was honored in his career and the fourth time that Tyson was recognized.

FOUR PANTHERS GARNER PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE ACCOLADES

Georgia State had four players named to the 2020 All-Sun Belt Preseason recognition, including Aris Briggs, Matthew Fernley, Ross Finnie, and Paul Tyson. Briggs was named the league's Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. He and Tyson have earned preseason recognition in each of the last two seasons.

TYSON NAMED TOP 10 GOALKEEPER BY TOPDRAWERSOCCER.COM

Georgia State senior goalkeeper Paul Tyson has been named one of the top 10 goalkeepers in the country entering the 2020 season by TopDrawerSoccer.com.
Tyson, a native of Liverpool, England, earned 2019 Sun Belt All-Tournament Team honors last year after guiding the Panthers to a fifth-straight Sun Belt Conference Championship Game appearance.
Last season Tyson started 19 games and played nearly 1,800 minutes in goal. He finished the year with an 11-4-4 record, including eight clean sheets to set a new single-season school record. Tyson ranked first in the Sun Belt Conference in goals against average (0.95) and save percentage (.787).

REACHING TRIPLE DIGITS

GSU head coach Brett Surrency reached the 100-win plateau in the regular season finale last year. He has led GSU to 11 or more wins in three consecutive seasons and is the only coach in GSU history to take the Panthers to the NCAA Tournament.
Surrency is currently the second-winningest head coach in GSU men's soccer history (102), behind only Scottie O'Neill (143), who coached the team from 1976-86.

Following Wednesday night's match, Georgia State will remain home and host Georgia Southern on Sunday at 2 p.m., at the GSU Soccer Complex.

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Players Mentioned

#1 Paul Tyson: GK; 6' 7"; Senior

#10 Matthew Fearnley: M; 5' 10"; Junior

#4 Ross Finnie: M; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#15 Justin Guest: M; 5' 8"; Sophomore

#31 Aris Briggs: F; 6' 4"; Senior

#12 Simon Carlson: MF; 5' 6"; Freshman

#27 Jeryn Hodge: F; 5' 9"; Freshman

#6 Alex Henderson: D; 6' 3"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#1 Paul Tyson
: 6' 7"; Senior
: GK

#10 Matthew Fearnley
: 5' 10"; Junior
: M

#4 Ross Finnie
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: M

#15 Justin Guest
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: M

#31 Aris Briggs
: 6' 4"; Senior
: F

#12 Simon Carlson
: 5' 6"; Freshman
: MF

#27 Jeryn Hodge
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: F

#6 Alex Henderson
: 6' 3"; Freshman
: D