Furman 1, Appalachian State 0
Greenville, S.C. -- Junior Fabien Vorbe scored in the 56th minute and Alec Kann notched his third consecutive shutout, including saving a first half penalty kick, to help Furman top Appalachian State, 1-0, in Southern Conference men's soccer action on Saturday evening at Eugene Stone III Soccer Stadium.
The win moved Furman to 6-4-3 overall as the Paladins remained unbeaten in SoCon play at 2-0-1. Appalachian State slipped to 5-5-2 overall and 2-1-0 in league play.
With the match deadlocked at 0-0 in the 56th minute, Jacob Brown unleashed a shot from the right side of the box that was deflected into the path of Vorbe who hammered in the rebound at the right post at 55:41 for his third match-winner of the season. The goal halted Furman's 365:41 scoring drought which dated back to September 29.
Kann, a junior from Decatur, Ga., put Furman in position to win by recording three saves, including a diving stop towards the left-hand post to deny Appalachian State's Chad Dalton on his 23rd minute penalty kick after the Mountaineers drew a foul in the box on a free kick.
Appalachian applied pressure to the Furman defense trying to find a late equalizer but the Paladin back line held the Mountaineers at bay and Brown headed a goal-bound Appalachian shot off of the line in the 85th minute to preserve the 1-0 victory.
Appalachian State held an 11-8 edge in shots and 4-3 advantage in shots on goal. Drake Branson recorded one save for the Mountaineers who fell in SoCon play for the first time in 2010.
Furman returns to action on Tuesday when it visits the Elon Phoenix. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ASU is also back in action on Tuesday, hosting Davidson at 7 p.m.
Elon 2, Wofford 1
ELON, N.C. - The Elon men's soccer team avenged last year's Southern Conference Tournament loss to the defending league champion Wofford Terriers, defeating the visiting Terriers, 2-1, at Rudd Field on Saturday night. After a scoreless first half, Elon netted back-to-back goals in a four-minute span en route to the victory. The Phoenix improved to 6-3-4 on the season, 3-1-0 in SoCon action. Wofford fell to 1-8-2 overall, 0-4-0 in the conference.
"I thought we showed progress tonight against a very spirited Wofford team whose record certainly does not reflect their level of play," commented Elon head coach Darren Powell. "It was good to get a 2-0 lead, but we conceded a late goal. We look forward to hosting a talented Furman team here on Tuesday night."
There were few scoring opportunities by either team in the opening 45 minutes of play, but the Phoenix nearly got on the board about 25 minutes into the contest when sophomore forward Chris Thomas' shot from about 15 yards out banged off the inside of the post.
Elon came out on the attack after the break, taking advantage of a free kick in the 51st minute of action. Sophomore Jahan Threeths served a perfect ball into the box where defender Austen King headed home the go-ahead goal to the middle of the net, giving Elon the lead and King his first career goal.
The Phoenix gained momentum off the goal and quickly added to its lead. Sophomore Nick Millington banged home a bullet from near the top of the box into the far corner of the net to give Elon the 2-0 advantage.
Senior Brad Franks almost gave the Phoenix a three-goal lead with about 13 minutes to play in the contest. The midfielder curled a free kick to the far post but Wofford keeper Andrew Drennan managed to pull the ball out of the air and save the goal.
Wofford cut the Elon lead in half in the 80th minute of action on a Blake Gardner rocket to the near post. Phoenix goalie Reed Dillard got a hand on the shot but couldn't wrap it up and the Terriers were within a goal.
The visitors scrambled to get the equalized but Elon held off the Terrier attack for the victory.
Elon held a 10-6 advantage in shots. Dillard made two saves while Drennan posted three stops.
The Phoenix will challenge the Furman Paladins in Tuesday night Southern Conference action from Rudd Field. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Wofford returns to the Triad to challenge UNCG, Tuesday at 7 p.m.
#25 College of Charleston 2, Georgia Southern 0
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - The College of Charleston men's soccer team offered a quality showing in taking down Georgia Southern, 2-0, in Southern Conference action on Saturday night at Patriots Point.
No. 25 CofC remains unbeaten in 11 matches and improves to 9-2-2 (4-0-1 SoCon) while Georgia Southern drops its sixth consecutively and falls to 3-8-1 (0-4-0 SoCon).
The Cougars kept possession in the Eagles' half for a vast majority of the contest and consequently managed a 23-14 shot advantage. Three different Cougars fired five shots and nine total CofC players registered an attempt.
Freshman keeper Kees Heemskerk (Zaandam, Holland) was brilliant once again and made eight saves - one off of a penalty kick - to maintain the blank slate.
The Cougars saw a quality opportunity in the opening minutes of the game when Ralphie Lundy (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) sent an out-swinging free kick into the box. Shawn Ferguson (Rock Hill, S.C.) got to the front of the pack and got a boot on it but the shot fired just outside the post.
CofC continued to push and cracked the Eagles' defense in the 12th minute with Sean de Silva (Port of Spain, Trinidad) making a fine individual effort to notch the goal. He controlled the ball at the left edge of the box, cut inside between two defenders and fired a shot underneath the diving keeper. The goal was de Silva's fifth of the season, tying him for the team high with Francis Twohig (St. Simon's Island, Ga.).
The Cougars continued to dominate the game and finally insured their lead in the 74th minute when an in-box scramble resulted from a corner kick. Twohig fired a hard shot on frame but a defender on the goal line was able to keep it out. The ball found the boot of Kareem Yearwood (Sousou Lands, Tobago) who would not miss the open-net opportunity.
The Cougars break from SoCon action to travel to Winthrop on Tuesday, Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. before closing the regular season with a pair of ensuing conference bouts.
The Eagles also step out of SoCon play Tuesday with a visit to Clemson. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.
Davidson 0, UNCG 0 (2 OT)
DAVIDSON, N.C. - Davidson and UNCG combined for 38 shots, but none found the back of the net as the Southern Conference men's soccer foes battled to a 0-0 draw Saturday night in Alumni Stadium.
The shutout was Davidson's sixth of the season and their third in a row. The scoreless draw was also their second consecutive as they battled to a 0-0 tie at Furman Tuesday.
Junior goalkeeper Chip Sanders (Thomasville, Ga.) made eight saves for Davidson (5-4-5, 1-2-2 SoCon), while his counterpart, Peyton Ford, also stopped eight for UNCG (5-5-3, 1-1-2 SoCon).
Both teams are back in action at 7 p.m. Tuesday with Davidson at Appalachian State and UNCG hosting Wofford.