Furman 1, No. 8 Coastal Carolina 0
CONWAY, S.C. – Forward Lewis Hawke scored his fourth goal of the year in the 76th minute to lift Furman to a 1-0 victory over eighth-ranked Coastal Carolina in nonconference men’s soccer action on Friday night at CCU Soccer Field.
With the match scoreless and less than 15 minutes remaining, senior Hart Zwing, a Myrtle Beach, S.C., native, eluded his defender to the end line on the left side. His cross deflected off of Marco Ortiz and Bobby Edet before Hawke tapped in the go ahead score at the 75:41 mark.
Coastal Carolina applied pressure to the Furman defense for much of the night, but the Paladins withstood the Chanticleers’ attack while getting seven saves from goalkeeper Sven Lissek. Late in the first half, it appeared CCU had taken the lead when a Chanticleer player redirected a free kick through the box and into the back of the net, but the goal was disallowed because the Coastal Carolina defender who took the shot had been directed to leave the field after being assisted by the team’s trainer moments early.
Coastal Carolina managed a 26-7 edge in shots, but Lissek turned away all seven shots on goal to record his third shutout of the season as Furman extended its winning streak to four matches.
Furman, 4-1-0, returns to action next Friday when it faces the Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington, Ky.
Mercer 3, UNC Asheville 0
STATESBORO, Ga. – The Mercer men’s soccer team cruised past UNC Asheville, 3-0, on Friday night to open the Springhill Suites Invitational at Eagle Field.
The Bears’ three goals were scored by three different players, including two that scored for the first time of the season. UNC Asheville fell to 1-2-1 as Mercer (3-2) recorded its third shutout in five games.
Freshman forward Will Bagrou scored his third goal of the season to put the Bears up 1-0 in the 43rd minute. Bagrou found the back of the net after UNC Asheville’s goalkeeper, Dan Jackson, played the goal kick to a defender and Bagrou took initiative to jump in, drive to goal and slip the ball past the keeper.
Fellow freshman forward Chandler Klemm stretched Mercer’s lead to 2-0 in the 53rd minute after receiving the ball on the left side of the field, dribbling between two players, beating a third defender and striking the ball in from 30 yards out.
Junior forward Jourdan Gooden added a third goal with eight seconds left on the clock to move the score to 3-0. Gooden was assisted by junior midfielder David Murtaugh, who ran up the left side and crossed in front of the net before Gooden tapped it in an empty net.
Senior center back Ashani Samuels and senior goalkeeper Greg Ranjitsingh led the Mercer defense in its third shutout of the season. Ranjitsingh made four saves, which gives him a total of 23 stops this season.
The Bears will conclude play in the Marriott Springhill Suites Invitational on Sunday at 11 a.m. when they face Florida Atlantic.
USC Upstate 2, VMI 0
LEXINGTON, Va. – Despite three early shots from Andrew Starnes in the first three minutes of the game, the Virginia Military Institute men’s soccer team could not get on the board against USC Upstate, falling 2-0 to the Spartans during the 2014 Jay Sculley Memorial Tournament, contested at Patchin Field.
A goal in the 10th minute by Upstate’s Rinaldi Alphonse gave the Spartans (1-1-1) a lead they would not relinquish, with Tucker Beerman on the back end. In the 58th minute, Joe Brinckwirth potted an insurance goal with double assists from Marvin Schmiege and Lukas Sommer.
The Spartans controlled the tempo in the game, outshooting VMI 20-12, putting 10 of those chances on frame. Keydet keeper Zach Kaplan made eight saves on the night, a season-best and second-most in a game for his career. Opposite Kaplan, Hassan Haddad made two saves to earn the first win for the Spartans this season.
Brinckwirth led the game with six shots, while teammate Leon Schwarzer took four. VMI (1-3-0) got four shots from Starnes, including one effort on goal. Blake McCauley and Dan Geyer were the only other Keydets to take multiple shots, with three and two, respectively.
Corner kicks were even through the match as both teams earned six, splitting their chances in each half. Fouls were minimal throughout the contest, with Upstate committing just seven while VMI (1-3-0) was called five times. Starnes was the only player booked for a card during the game as he was charged with a yellow in the 27th minute.
One of VMI’s best chances came in the second minute as a Spartan defender attempted to clear the ball with a header but tipped the ball backward to a waiting Starnes. The junior got a solid header attempt goal-ward but the chance was stopped by Haddad.
In the first game of the 2014 Jay Sculley Memorial Tournament, Liberty University topped Robert Morris 2-1 in an overtime thriller.
Action at the tournament continues on Sunday as Liberty takes on USC Upstate at 12:30 p.m., while the Keydets and Robert Morris round out the weekend with a tilt at 3:30 p.m. Sunday’s match at Patchin Field will be the first-ever meeting between VMI and Robert Morris.