Wofford 1, Furman 0
SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- The Wofford men's soccer team only needed one goal to snap a number of streaks Saturday night as the Terriers scored early and held on to defeat Upstate rival Furman in Southern Conference action at Snyder Field in Spartanburg, S.C.
The Terriers put the only mark on the scoreboard at 2:57 and held on against the Paladins, despite being outshot 20-10. Junior co-captain defender Nick Schuermann served a long pass along the backline near the midfield stripe to a streaking Wilson Hood. Hood collected the ball in stride and one-timed the pass past Furman (9-5-1, 4-1 SoCon) goalkeeper Alec Kann from 18 yards out for his team-leading fifth tally of the season.
Junior James Walker had an opportunity to put Wofford (5-9, 1-3 SoCon) up another goal when he went around the Paladin defense but Kann stood tall on Walker's attempt from the left side with 6:39 to play in the first half.
Hood had another crack at a goal when he intercepted a pass along Furman's defensive backline, but his shot sailed just over the crossbar at 54:20 and the game remained a one-score contest.
The Paladins had a number of looks themselves, including second half shots from Coleton Henning and Warren Creavalle which were saved by Terrier goalie Thomas Hunter.
The victory marked the first in Southern Conference action for Wofford since it defeated Elon Oct. 25, 2005. It also was the first conference triumph for head coach Ralph Polson.
The Terriers snapped Furman's eight-match winning streak this season and 11-game consecutive run through league opponents, which included a 4-0 mark in 2008 and 7-0 last season. The last Paladin loss in conference play came in the final regular-season match of the 2006 campaign, Oct. 20, to UNC Greensboro.
Wofford also tallied its first win against Furman since a 4-3 overtime victory in Greenville Oct. 20, 1982. The Terriers ended a six-game losing streak in 2008 with the win and earned their third shutout of the campaign.
Hunter stepped into the cage for his second start this season and collected a career-high eight saves in the shutout. The eight stops mark his only numbers of 2008 after not posting a save in two previous appearances.
Hood and Walker paced Wofford with three shots apiece, while Creavalle led all players with four attempts. Patrick Murray added three shots for the Paladins.
UNC Greensboro 2, College of Charleston 1
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. --- Two first period goals paced UNC Greensboro to a 2-1 win over the College of Charleston men's soccer team in Southern Conference action on Saturday night at Patriots Point Soccer Stadium
With the loss, the Cougars drop to 8-6-0 on the year, 2-3-0 in the SoCon, while UNC Greensboro improves to 6-8-1 (2-2-0 in the SoCon).
In the first period, the Cougars attacked the net forcefully in the first few minutes of play, as the team racked up five shots on net. UNC Greensboro goalie Nate Berry, however, made a save on three of the shots to keep the Cougars scoreless.
The Spartans got on the scoreboard in the 23rd minute when Tebatso Manyama scored his second goal of the season, unassisted after he fired a shot from five yards out into the net.
The Cougars would strike back in the 41st minute when Zach Prince, making his return to the Charleston lineup after sitting out the last month with an injury, scored his sixth goal of the season off a cross from Jake Helmig. The assist was the fourth of the year for Helmig.
UNC Greensboro's Corey Maret fired a shot from 25 yards away from the net and scored his first goal of the season in the 42nd minute to give the Spartans the 2-1 lead going into the half.
In the second half, both teams had numerous opportunities to score goals. Charleston took seven shots overall in the half, but could not cash in on any of their attempts, as UNC Greensboro hung to take the 2-1 decision.
At the end of the night, the Cougars outshot the Spartans 16-14 and held a 7-2 advantage in corner kicks. UNC Greensboro goalie Nate Berry earned the win after making seven saves in net for the Spartans, while Cougar goalie Clark Hankins made four saves alone in the second half.
VMI 2, Appalachian State 0
LEXINGTON, Va. - VMI picked up its first win of the season defeating Appalachian State, 2-0, Saturday afternoon in Lexington.
Andrew Self got VMI started in the 34th minute when he scored off an assist from Jacob MacIntyre.
Brian Harding capped off the scoring for the Keydets in the 47th minute when he put one in the upper left corner past Appalachian keeper Collin Taylor. The goals were the first of the season for both Harding and Self.
With the two goals scored, VMI scored more than one goal for just the third time all year.
The Mountaineers managed just one shot on goal in the first half. David Rucker took a shot that was stopped by VMI keeper Brian Sowell
Appalachian had chances as Steven Sassano fired a game high six shots and Arie Muniz had five, but Sowell made six saves in the shutout.
Appalachian finishes up their three game road trip at Virginia Tech on Tuesday, Oct. 21 at 7 p.m.