GW kept James Madison from finding the back of the net in Thursday’s preseason exhibition game, earning a 3-0 victory as the Colonials opened head coach George Lidster’s final season. Seniors Mike Burke and Jake Davis tallied all three of GW’s goals.
Davis was the first to put GW on the board, scoring in the 45th minute with a 20-yard shot to the lower right corner, and giving the Colonials a 1-0 lead they held through halftime.
Burke scored twice in the second half. His first goal started with junior Zach Abaie’s 60th-minute corner kick to the back post, where sophomore midfielder Bailey Hinners, who headed the ball back to Burke, setting up his successful shot. Burke’s second goal came in the 83rd minute when he capitalized on an endline free kick from junior Mattia Melillo.
The Colonials were represented in net by junior goalkeepers Brendan Lafferty and Alejandro Almodovar, who split Thursday’s action, with Lafferty earning two saves.
GW returns letterwinners and 10 starters in the upcoming season, looking to build upon last year’s disappointing season, when they posted a 3-15-0 record and finished 13th of 14 in the A-10. A five-man recruiting class will join GW on the field, highlighted by two National Letter of Intent signees.