DAVIDSON, N.C. – Gardner-Webb Women's Soccer took on the Davidson Wildcats on Thursday evening in their season opener, which took place at Alumni Stadium on the campus of Davidson. The Wildcats took home the win with a final score of 3-1.
 
"We played like it was our match in the first half and we were fortunate to only be down one at the half," said Head Coach Mike Varga. "The second half was much better, as we had control of the ball early. We worked hard to equalize, and after doing so needed to maintain the energy but instead we allowed Davidson to regain their momentum. As a team we look forward to building off of the positives and utilizing what we learned in our upcoming matches."
 
Due to weather delays, the match did not officially start until 8:12 PM. Once play was underway, it was a scoreless back-and-forth battle on the pitch for 30 minutes. Until Davidson scored the first goal of the game in the 31^st minute of play to take the lead.
 
Maddie Turlington netted the eventual equalizer in the 72^nd minute off of a penalty kick, and marked her first goal of the season.
 
Unable to hang on, the Runnin' Bulldogs defense allowed two additional goals by the Wildcats in the 77^th and 85^th minutes, allowing Davidson to take home the win.
 
Despite allowing three goals Katelyn Kellogg had six total saves in tonight's game, which is four more than the opponent's goalkeeper Mary Grace Bunch.
 
The Wildcats paced the Runnin' Bulldogs on shots in the matchup with a total of 21, and GWU had a total of 6. Turlington led with three shots, with two on goal.
 
Gardner-Webb Women's Soccer will be back in action on Sunday, August 22 at 1:00 PM, as they are set to host The Citadel at Greene-Harbison Stadium. The action will stream on ESPN+.
 
For the latest on Gardner-Webb Women's Soccer, follow @gwuwsoc on social media or visit GWUSports.com.