No. 24 Furman 1, VMI 0
LEXINGTON, Va. – Kevin Pahl’s first-half score proved to be the difference as the 24th-ranked Furman men’s soccer team edged VMI, 1-0, in Southern Conference action on Saturday afternoon at Patchin Field.
The victory improved the Paladins to 5-1-3 overall and 1-0-1 in SoCon play while extending Furman’s unbeaten run to eight matches and its shutout streak to six matches. VMI slipped to 1-8-1 overall and 0-2-0 in league play.
After the Paladins dominated most of the opening half hour, Pahl put the Paladins in front with his first goal of the season at the 34:45 mark. Following a free kick, Pahl ripped a 17-yard shot past VMI goalkeeper Zach Kaplan for the lone score of the match, with assists credited to Tony Santibanez and Eli Pinner.
Junior Sven Lissek made a diving save in the first half for his only stop of the afternoon to earn his seventh shutout of the season in goal. The Sewau, Germany, native ran the Paladins’ streak of consecutive minutes without allowing a goal to 634.
Furman managed a 20-5 edge in shot attempts and 9-1 advantage in shots on goal. Kaplan finished with eight saves for the Keydets.
The Paladins return home on Tuesday to host SoCon rival Wofford on Seagraves Field at Stone Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
The Keydets hit the road for their next two SoCon games, first with a trip to Johnson City, Tenn., against ETSU. Kickoff for the Oct. 7 game is set for 7 p.m. at Summers-Taylor Stadium.
Mercer 1, ETSU 0
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The Mercer men’s soccer team edged out ETSU, 1-0, on Saturday night to improve to 2-0 in Southern Conference play.
After a scoreless first half, the Bears (6-4, 2-0 SoCon) got on the board in the 67th minute. The goal came off a quick throw from Trenton Whitely to Thomas Glenn, who then crossed in front of the goal to Jourdan Gooden, who got past his man and slipped the ball in the goal.
Offensively, Mercer had a good chance in the first half when Max Poore had a shot that was cleared off the goal line.
After the goal in the second half, Mercer managed the game well for the remaining 23 minutes. Both teams had a few shots at goal, but neither was able to find the back of the net.
On the defensive end, Greg Ranjitsingh made a couple of saves from point-blank range, including a one-on-one opportunity. In all, Ranjitsingh notched four saves on the evening.
ETSU (4-5, 0-2 SoCon) led in shots taken, 10-7, but the Bears and Bucs were evenly matched in corner kicks, 3-3.
ETSU redshirt sophomore Joao Ramalho recorded five shots in the loss, including two shots on goal.
Next up, Mercer returns home to face UNCG on Tuesday, Oct. 7, at 7 p.m. The Bucs will continue Southern Conference play Tuesday at 7 p.m., as they play host to fellow SoCon newcomer VMI.
UNCG 2, Wofford 1 (2OT)
GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG redshirt sophomore forward Christopher Reingen picked the perfect time to score his first career goal, finding the back of the net in the 102nd minute of play to lift the Spartans to a 2-1 victory over defending Southern Conference champion Wofford on Saturday night at the UNCG Soccer Stadium.
The golden goal capped a thrilling weekend for the Spartans and UNCG as the men’s soccer national championship teams from 1985, 1986 and 1987 were inducted into the UNCG Athletics Hall of Fame and were present at the game to witness the game-winner.
The game-winning tally came after over 100 minutes of soccer had been played in front of a crowd of 1,028 as the Spartans were awarded a free kick from 40 yards out. Senior forward Austin Miller touched a ball to freshman Moises Gonzalez down the left-hand side and Gonzalez sent a perfect cross to the top of the 18-yard box. Reingen took his first touch and whipped a shot from 20 yards out through traffic and past the diving Wofford goalkeeper, sending the stadium and Spartans into a frenzy.
The double-overtime victory marks the first overtime victory for the Spartans since Nov. 11, 2011 (2-1 vs. Appalachian State), as they had been 0-5-4 in extra time over the past two-plus years. Additionally, it marks the first time UNCG has scored a golden goal in the second overtime since Nov. 16, 2007, when the Spartans downed the College of Charleston 2-1 in the SoCon tournament.
The victory improved the Spartans to 1-0-1 in SoCon play and into a tie for second place with four points overall. It also raised UNCG’s record to 19-3-1 all-time against Wofford, including a 16-2-1 mark during the regular season. The victory sets up a matchup of top two teams Tuesday night when the Spartans travel to Mercer for the first-ever meeting in SoCon play against the Bears, who are 2-0-0 in league play.
The teams battled back and forth for the first 45 minutes with the Terriers holding a 6-4 edge in first half shots, but most shots were from distance for Wofford in the opening half. The Spartans’ best chance of the first half came in the 17th minute as freshman Tommi Gardarsson sent a through ball into the box. Miller found some space and fired a shot on goal that Wofford goalkeeper Garrett Closs was able to punch over the crossbar.
Wofford’s top chance of the first 45 minutes came in the 32nd minute of action. Forward Matthew Aurednik found some space along the end line and drove past a UNCG defender toward goal. Aurednik drove down the end line and ripped a shot on goal but freshman goalkeeper William Pyle was there to thwart the attack. Reingen had a pair of chances late in the second half with two headers that Closs was able to save to keep the game scoreless.
The Spartans got the game’s first goal in the 55th minute of play as Miller made a long run down the left-hand side and got hauled down in the box for a penalty kick call. Gardarsson stepped up to the spot and placed his shot in the bottom corner, opposite of where Closs was going, for the 1-0 lead. The goal is the second of the season for him and both have come from the penalty spot.
Wofford started to gain momentum after the Spartans’ goal, generating chances against the Spartans’ defense. In the 60th minute, Connor Davis tried to take advantage of a Spartan miscue as Pyle was caught out of position. Davis sent a shot that was surely goal-bound but freshman defender Eric Gunnarsson made a diving save to keep the ball out of the net.
Pyle started to take control of the game in the second half, making eight of his career-high 10 saves in the second 45 minutes of play. He stoned Nestor Jaramillo in the 67th minute with a full-extension diving stop from 10 yards out and also thwarted a header from Forrest Lasso from close range in the 74th minute.
Wofford finally was able to get a ball past Pyle in the 75th minute of play. Will Puckett maintained possession in the midfield on a counterattack and sent a long through ball behind the Spartans’ defense. Aurednik ran onto the ball and beat Pyle on a breakaway for his league-leading eighth goal of the year.
The Terriers kept pressing in the final minutes of the second half and looked ready to take the lead in the 89th minute as Aurednik again got behind the defense. This time, Pyle was able to get enough of his shot to keep it out of the back of the net, sending the game into overtime.
The first overtime was played without many strong scoring chances until the 100th minute of play. Junior forward Jacques Francois found space at the top of the 18-yard box and ripped a bending shot that grazed the outside of the post before heading just wide, setting the stage for Reingen’s heroics early in the second overtime.
Pyle picked up his first career victory Saturday. In his last three games, Pyle has made seven or more saves in all three games and is averaging 6.8 saves per game in his first four games. Closs picked up the loss for Wofford as he made five saves.
The Terriers outshot UNCG 23-12 in the loss.
The Spartans return to action Tuesday night when they travel to Macon, Ga., for a meeting against league foe Mercer. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
The Terriers continue their road stand, playing at Furman on Tuesday. The match is slated from a 7 p.m. start.