Wofford 1, Bowling Green 0

CONWAY, S.C. – The Wofford men’s soccer team earned a 1-0 victory Friday over Bowling Green in the first game of the Coastal Carolina Men’s Soccer Invitational. Ryan Hurst scored his first goal of the year as the Terriers improved to 2-2-0 on the season, while Bowling Green falls to 1-2-1.

Wofford opened the scoring in the 12th minute when Nestor Jaramillo assisted on Hurst’s game-winning goal. Jaramillo played a through ball to Hurst, who was able to chip the Bowling Green keeper to give the Terriers a 1-0 lead. Wofford controlled the remainder of the first half but only led 1-0 at the break.

The Terriers also controlled the majority of the second half but were unable to add to their lead. Wofford held the edge in shots (10-4) and corners (4-1) in the second half.

The Wofford defense was strong throughout the game on their way to recording a shutout.

Andrew Drennan earned the shutout win for the Terriers and improved to 2-2 for the year. He recorded two saves on eight shots faced. Michael Wiest took the loss for the Falcons and fell to 1-2-1 on the season. He recorded one save on 17 shots faced.

The Terriers return to the pitch Sunday for their second game of the Coastal Carolina Invitational against Florida Atlantic. The match is set to kick off at 2 p.m. in Conway, S.C.

 

Elon 3, Lipscomb 2

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Two scores from Chris Thomas helped the Elon University men’s soccer team hold off the Lipscomb Bisons for a 3-2 win on Friday night in the Hyatt Place Select Invitational.

Elon improved to 2-1 with the victory, while Lipscomb fell to 1-4 with the setback.

Thomas put the Phoenix on the board in the fifth minute after striking his own deflection under a diving John Schnurbusch for the goal, giving Elon a 1-0 lead.

The Maroon and Gold extended its lead to 2-0 just minutes later after an own goal by the Bisons in the 20th minute of the first half.

Elon controlled the match in all facets in the opening stanza, taking 11 total shots (five on goal) and holding Lipscomb without a shot.

Lipscomb responded in the 52nd minute to cut Elon’s lead in half after Ethan Summers passed to Zander El-Hindi for the score following a save by Elon goalie Nathan Dean to make it a 2-1 match.

Dean played all 90 minutes between the posts and tallied two saves.

But Thomas struck again late, nailing a penalty kick behind Schnurbusch in the 82nd minute to give the Phoenix a 3-1 lead. Thomas has scored four goals this season and is the Southern Conference’s active leader with 34 during his career.

Lipscomb made it a one-goal game late with a score by Josue Chavez in the 88th minute, but Elon held off the Bisons over the final two minutes to secure the victory.

Elon ended the match with a 16-8 advantage in shots (7-4 shots on-goal) and a 4-3 edge in corners.

The Phoenix returns to action on Sunday at 1 p.m. versus Belmont.

 

No. 23 Furman 4, UNCW 2

GREENVILLE, S.C. – The 23rd-ranked Furman Paladins netted three first-half goals en route to a 4-2 victory over UNCW in the opening round of the 2012 Diadora/Spinx Gray Griffin Memorial Tournament on Friday evening at Stone Soccer Stadium.

College of Charleston blanked Memphis 2-0 in the first game of the day.

With its victory, Furman, ranked in the College Soccer News poll, improved to 4-1-0 on the season while the Seahawks slipped to 1-2-1.

Furman All-American Walker Zimmerman opened the scoring at 10:31 as he directed a Martin Ontiveros cross inside the far post for his second goal of the campaign. Ontiveros netted a goal of his own just over 15 minutes later, blasting a shot from 30 yards out that skidded under UNCW goalkeeper Brad Newman.

The Paladins extended their cushion to 3-0 just seven minutes from intermission when Adrian McInnis lofted a cross that Zimmerman headed across the box for Alex Crooks to finish at the left post for his first tally of 2012.

After the restart, the Seahawks trimmed the margin to 3-1 as Ettiene Boulanger played a through ball to Jamie Dell, who finished to the far right corner at 59:20. Furman tallied its final goal in the 87th minute when Coleton Henning curled a shot from the left corner of the 18-yard box to the far post for his fourth goal of the season.

UNCW added a consolation goal just one minute from full time as David Sizemore turned and fired past Paladin goalkeeper Doug Ryan for the final 4-2 margin.

Furman managed a 14-6 edge in shots and 9-4 advantage in shots on goal, while each side earned six corner kicks.

Ryan stopped two shots to earn the victory in goal for Furman. Newman recorded two saves in 45 minutes of play to suffer the loss for the Seahawks.

In the opening match of the day, Daan Brinkman notched a first half goal and Troy Peterson scored just before the hour mark to lift College of Charleston past Memphis 2-0.

UNCW faces College of Charleston on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. at Stone Stadium with Furman set to battle Memphis at 2 p.m.

Tickets for Sunday’s doubleheader at the Diadora/Spinx Gray Griffin Memorial Tournament are $4 for adults and $2 for children.  Furman students get in free with a valid student ID card. 

 

College of Charleston 2, Memphis 0

GREENVILLE, S.C. – The College of Charleston men’s soccer team shut out Memphis 2-0 in the opening game of the Diadora/Spinx Gray Griffin Memorial Tournament hosted by Furman on Friday evening.

Daan Brinkman scored his first career goal in the first half and Troy Peterson provided the insurance marker in the second half to earn the Cougars the victory.

CofC got off to a bit of a slow start and allowed the Tigers to take the first four shots of the match, though none were on frame or overly threatening. CofC made the necessary adjustments around the 10-minute mark and dictated the pace for the remainder of the first half.

After the opening 10 minutes, the Cougars outshot Memphis 7-0 over the remainder of the first half.

The opening goal came in the 33rd minute when Sean de Silva connected with Brinkman on a centering feed and Brinkman slotted the ball into the left side of the net from 16 yards away.

The Cougars continued pressuring into the second half and padded their lead in the 60th minute when Sam Redmond and Robbie Benson exchanged the ball amongst themselves before Benson sent the ball across the goal mouth and Peterson finished from the far post.

Then trailing 2-0, the Tigers became more offensively oriented and produced 11 second-half shot attempts, but Cougar keeper Kees Heemskerk was always up to the task.

Heemskerk finished the night with six saves, all of which came in the second half, en route to his second consecutive shutout.

The Cougars, now winners of three straight, conclude the Diadora/Spinx Gray Griffin Memorial Tournament on Sunday afternoon against UNCW. Kickoff is slated for 11:30 a.m.

 

No. 23 NC State 3, UNCG 1

GREENSBORO, N.C. – In front of a crowd of 2,779 fans, the UNCG men’s soccer team dropped a hard-fought 3-1 contest to No. 23 NC State on Friday night in the home opener at UNCG Soccer Stadium.

The loss dropped the Spartans to 25-11-5 all-time in home openers while also snapping a three-game unbeaten streak in such games.

NC State took the early lead in the 12th minute of action as Alex Martinez found space along the end line. Martinez beat a UNCG defender and broke toward goal, where he beat fifth-year senior goalkeeper Peyton Ford with a shot to the bottom corner for his third tally of the season.

UNCG nearly tied the game in the 29th minute of play after a free kick. The Spartans sent the ball deep down the sideline before crossing it into the box. Junior midfielder Oddur Gudmundsson ripped a turning shot that sailed just over the cross bar, keeping the Wolfpack in the lead.

NC State threatened again in the 35th minute as Zabarle Kollie drove a header off of the crossbar. The Wolfpack kept the pressure on and sent the ball back into the box, where, this time, Kollie ripped his header past Ford for a 2-0 lead in the 36th minute.

In the 57th minute, the Spartans came within inches of cutting into the Wolfpack lead. Junior Brian Graham sent a cross through the box to freshman midfielder Lukas Zarges, who ripped it past NC State goalkeeper Fabian Otte, but it struck the post and bounced out of play.

NC State extended its lead to 3-0 in the 69th minute of action as Kollie beat Ford to a loose ball in the 18-yard box. He sent the ball back across the box to an on-running Martinez, who deposited it into the empty net for his second tally of the night.

The Spartans once again hit the post in the 73rd minute as this time Jonathan Leonard saw his attempt ricochet off, keeping it a three-goal contest.

UNCG broke up the shutout in the 78th minute of action as it was awarded a free kick just outside the 18-yard box. Senior forward Hakan Ilhan stepped up and placed a perfect shot over the NC State wall and into the side netting without an attempt by Otte. The goal was the fourth of the season for Ilhan and his fourth in the past three games.

The Spartans ended the night with a 10-8 edge in shots as Zarges paced the way with four. Ford picked up the loss as he allowed three goals in 69:42, while Otte made one save in 90 minutes of action.

UNCG returns to play next Tuesday night as it travels down the road to High Point for a 7 p.m. contest against the Panthers.