UNCG 1, Furman 0
Greenville, S.C. -- Adam Shore directed a Hakan Ilhan cross off into the net in the 76th minute to lift UNC Greensboro to a 1-0 victory over Furman and a share of the Southern Conference regular season title in men's soccer action on Saturday evening at Stone Stadium.
The win, which improved the Spartans to 9-5-3 overall and 4-1-2 in the SoCon, moved UNCG into a first place tie with College of Charleston on 14 points. Furman dropped to 7-6-4 overall and 3-1-2 in the league. The Paladins close the regular season at Wofford on Tuesday and can claim a share of the SoCon by forcing a three-way tie with a victory over the Terriers.
UNC Greensboro notched the only goal of the night at 75:41 when Ilhan played a low bending cross from wide on the left side. Shore slid onto the ball inside the six-yard box and redirected it off of the right post and into goal for his sixth tally of the season.
Furman outshot the Spartans 11-5 on the night and had a larger share of the dangerous chances, but forced UNCG goalkeeper Peyton Ford into just two saves. Caleb Suri just missed putting the Paladins ahead in the 37th minute when, after settling the ball on the left side of the box, his shot to the far corner slid wide of the post. Midway through the second half Eric Cobleigh delivered a ball into the box that deflected off a UNCG defender, but Ford pushed the shot over the cross bar with a leaping save.
Alec Kann totaled two saves for the Paladins on senior night as the Paladins dropped their third straight decision to UNC Greensboro and fell for just the second time at home this season.
With a win in Tuesday's regular season finale at Wofford, Furman can still earn a share of the SoCon title and a home match in next weekend's SoCon Tournament first round.
UNCG, which has clinched a share of the regular season championship and the No. 1 seed in the upcoming SoCon Tournament, closes the regular season Tuesday with a 7 p.m. match at Longwood.
College of Charleston 2, Appalachian State 2 (2 OT)
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - The College of Charleston men's soccer team drew with Appalachian State in Southern Conference action on Saturday afternoon. The Cougars built a 2-0 lead but allowed two goals late in the match to extend the game.
The Cougars (10-3-3, 4-1-2 SoCon) still sit atop the conference standings with 14 points with Appalachian State (7-6-3, 4-2-1 SoCon) a single point behind. Third-place Furman controls its own destiny, however, needing one win in their two remaining SoCon bouts to overtake the top spot.
The Cougars did a quality job of maintaining possession and controlling the pace of the play in the match. The Cougars registered a 22-18 shot advantage including an 8-2 advantage in the overtime periods.
CofC struck early in the match when Sean de Silva (Port of Spain, Trinidad) collected a bouncing ball in the left side of the box and threaded a ball across the congested box to Andy Craven (St. Simon's Island, Ga.) who capitalized inside the far post.
The game's implications were evident as the teams slugged through the ensuing minutes, combining for 22 fouls and five yellow cards.
The Cougars looked to get the insurance goal they needed when de Silva intercepted a clearance attempt and rocketed a low, line-drive kick into the right corner of the net from 25 yards to put CofC up, 2-0, in the 83rd minute.
The Mountaineers stormed back, however, starting when David Dodge was awarded and converted on a penalty kick just 1:45 later.
Then, with just under a minute remaining in regulation, Harrison Delbridge took control of a loose ball in the box and turned into space to rip a shot into the upper-left corner, equalizing the game at 2-2.
Even though the Cougars controlled the overwhelming shot advantage in the added periods, neither team could capitalize on the extra time and the 2-2 score went final.
CofC has assured a spot in the top four and will therefore host the opening-round match which will be played on Nov. 6 or Nov. 7.
ASU hosts East Tennessee State Tuesday night at 7 p.m. in the regular season finale.
Davidson 5, Presbyterian 1
DAVIDSON, N.C. - Four unanswered, second-half goals led Davidson to a 5-1 win over Presbyterian College in non-conference men's soccer action Saturday night at Alumni Stadium.
Junior forward Thomas Zimmerman (Gainesville, Fla.) led the 'Cats with the first two goals of his collegiate career. Senior Yannick Pilgrim (Arima, Trinidad & Tobago) gave the 'Cats a 2-1 lead in the 66th minute, and Zimmerman, freshman Alex Givens (Raleigh, N.C.) and junior Mark Millard (Oak Ridge, N.C.) added a goal each to give Davidson a four-goal cushion.
Zimmerman gave Davidson a 1-0 lead in the 30th minute. A Wildcat corner kick was headed out by a PC defender, but it went right to Zimmerman and his strike from the top of the box went just underneath the crossbar. The Blue Hose were able to head into the halftime intermission with the score even at 1-1 though, as they evened it off a free kick from 25 yards out. Byron Quinatoa's shot deflected off a Davidson defender and rolled just inside the right post
A pair of seniors teamed up for the game-winning goal, as an Alex Caskey (Dunwoody, Ga.) shot from the top of the box had too much heat on it for goalkeeper James Neal to smother, and the rebound went to a charging Pilgrim who scored for the first time since the season-opening, 6-1 win over Marist.
Freshman Chris Pettigilio (Westford, Mass.) found Zimmerman with exactly 17 minutes remaining to give the 'Cats an insurance goal. Givens then extended the margin just 27 seconds later when a PC defender's steal attempt went right to his foot and he was able to score from 20 yards out for his second goal in as many games.
Millard chipped in the final goal in the 85th minute of the game from the top of the box after battling a PC defender for a feed from junior Garret Bostwick (Raleigh, N.C.)
Davidson outshot PC, 26-13 for the game. Neal allowed four goals and made three saves, while Andrew Wallingford played the final 14 minutes and made two saves with one goal allowed for the Blue Hose. Junior goalkeeper Chip Sanders (Thomasville, Ga.) allowed the one goal and made four stops in just over 83 minutes of action. Freshman Ben Gold (Woodland Hills, Calif.) finished the game and made one save.
Davidson will return to action Tuesday night in Alumni Stadium for their regular season finale against ACC foe Wake Forest. Kick-off is set for 7 p.m.
Wofford 2, UNC Asheville 0
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - Wofford scored a goal in each half as the Terriers downed UNC Asheville 2-0 in men's soccer action Saturday afternoon at Greenwood Field.
Wofford (3-9-3) remained unbeaten in its last three matches, while the Bulldogs (3-11-1) fell for the fifth straight time.
The Terriers struck first with a goal from Andrew Eppelsheimer in the first half and another goal from Wilson Hood in the second half to earn their first victory ever at Greenwood Field.
Asheville fired 13 shots on goal as Bryan Bartels led the Bulldog effort with four shots. Wofford had two goalkeepers in the match as Ben Limbaugh and Andrew Drennan shared the shutout. Limbaugh made two saves in the first half.
The Terriers scored their first goal in the 38th minute. Nick Orton made a streamline pass to Epplesheimer who scored from 18 yards out on a shot that went into the top right corner of the Bulldog net. It was Epplesheimer's third goal of the year.
Wofford sealed the win with a second goal midway through the second half. Wilson Hood knocked in a shot off a feed from Scott Redding, scoring in the 68th minute to push the lead to 2-0. The score was Hood's team-leading sixth goal of the season.
The Terriers enjoyed a slight edge in shots 15-13 and had eight corner kicks to six for the Bulldogs.
Coach Polson's program will return home for the last regular season match as they face conference rivals, Furman. The match will take place this Tuesday, November 2nd and will feature Senior Night. The game starts at 7:00pm on Snyder Field.