This post was updated Aug. 20 at 4:39 p.m.

Many questions loomed in the breezy air of Wallis Annenberg Stadium.

Chief among those was the Bruins first contest since 2019 without standout goalkeeper Lauren Brzykcy, in addition to the team’s response to the pressure of defending a national title.

On Thursday, sophomore Neeku Purcell answered at least one of those questions.

No. 1 UCLA women’s soccer (1-0) took down Georgia (0-1) at home to open its 2023 campaign by a score of 2-0. In addition to outscoring the Bulldogs, the Bruins outshot their opponents 11-3 overall and 9-2 in shots on goal. The campaign not only saw a pair of goals by UCLA, but its own posts were protected by Bryzkcy’s successor, Purcell, who collected two saves of her own.

Coach Margueritte Aozasa said despite the clean sheet statistically, the Bruins still have areas to improve as the season begins.

“It was solid, a good start to the season,” Aozasa said. “We knew going into today it’s probably not going to be our best performance, just because we haven’t played in a long time, and that showed.”

The initial moments of the contest carried on scoreless despite UCLA holding majority possession of the ball. The Bruins even locked in three shots, with two on goal, in the first 15 minutes while Georgia didn’t attempt its first shot until 35 minutes in.

However, junior defender Jayden Perry dusted off the back of the net with a sharp shot to the top left corner on a penalty kick in the 23rd minute.

Perry said that after light discussions among the team about who would find the goal first, it was rewarding that she found success for her team.

“There was a lot of speculation about who was going to get the first goal and Emma (junior midfielder Emma Egizii) actually told me yesterday, ‘It’s either you or I that score,’ and so it was me. It felt good,” Perry said.

In the 35th minute, the ball came inches away from passing the white line into the Bruins’ goal until Purcell launched it out of the area, marking her first save of the season and leaving Georgia scoreless, as it would remain for the rest of the contest. It was just Purcell’s sixth career save and first time starting for UCLA.

“There’s always room for improvement. I’m happy to get the shutout today, the backline did a great job with that as well,” Purcell said. “Overall, really happy with a clean sheet.”

In the first half, the Bruins held the lead by one and also led the Bulldogs in shots by a margin of six. Georgia would log another attempt to score, but Purcell recorded her second save to prevent the Bulldogs from landing on the board.

UCLA finished out the contest with a goal from graduate student forward Ally Cook in the 70th minute, adding to its success and bringing the final score to 2-0.

With its first win under its belt, UCLA still has a long way to go, Perry said, adding that the Bruins are not overlooking any opponent and are willing to work to prove themselves.

“We can’t take any game lightly, and we just have to play every game to prove why we’re No. 1,” Perry said.