ATHENS, Ga.- Following a scoreless draw Thursday night, the Vanderbilt Commodores (7-3-1, 2-0-1) were looking to break through on the scoreboard early against Georgia (4-6-1, 0-3-0).
They got a goal in the first half but Georgia tied the game with a little more than 20 minutes remaining in regulation. The Dores stayed composed and got a late goal in the 81st minute from Rebecca Rossett to seal the 2-1 road win.
Following the game, Ambrose was thrilled with his team’s resolve after giving up the equalizer in the second half.
“I thought our effort after giving up the goal was what made us,” said Ambrose. “We talked before the game about being tough and having a grittiness to us in games like this on Sunday and that showed today. I couldn’t be happier, that is a tremendous quality to have this time of year.”
The Commodores maintained a majority of the possession in the first half and had a few chances on net but nothing was brewing until the final five minutes of the half.
Brook Colangelo had possession just outside of the box and made a move past her defender. As she entered the box, the Georgia defender went for the slide tackle, tripped up Colangelo and a penalty kick was called. Stephanie Amack took the PK for the Dores and sent it low towards the left post for the goal.
The Commodores took the 1-0 lead into the break. Entering today, they were 3-0 on the year when leading at the half.
In the second half, Georgia regained more of the possession, which led to more chances in the attacking third.
In the 67th minute, the Bulldogs took advantage. They won a battle for the ball in the corner and sent it into the box. Mariel Gutierrez got the first shot off but Taiana Tolleson made an incredible save. The ball ended up bouncing around the box before Reagan Glisson got her foot on in and sent it towards the back of the net for the equalizer.
The Commodores did not panic, as they gained back possession and tried to make runs into their attacking third.
In the 81st minute, Simone Charley got passed her defender to the ball and headed towards the box. Rather than taking the shot, Charley passed the ball back towards the middle of the box where Rebecca Rossett was making a run. Rossett beat her two defenders to the ball and sent it near post for the go-ahead goal.
The Commodores almost got an insurance goal from Charley two minutes later. She had a shot from 20 yards out and it hit off the right post and came back out.
The Dores kept Georgia at bay the final seven minutes to secure the 2-1 win and improve to 2-0-1 in conference play. The Dores are now 5-1 in road games this year.
Taiana Tolleson made her second straight start in net and picked up her first career win. She made eight saves on the afternoon and came out to catch many Georgia crosses throughout the match.
“I thought she was very good,” stated Ambrose. “The break away save she made that would have put them up 2-1 changed the game. She did great coming out for crosses. If there is something in the air, there is not doubt with her and she is coming out to get it.”
Stephanie Amack scored the first goal off the penalty kick and had a stellar game on the back line. She made a number of stops in and around the box to thwart any chances Georgia was trying to build.
The Dores return home this week for a Friday night match against Missouri. The match is slated for a 6 pm CT start and will be broadcast on SEC Network +.
