March 13, 2000

FURMAN'S NUSUM & PEREIRA REPRESENT

HOME NATIONS ON NATIONAL TEAMS

GREENVILLE, SC -- Furman men's soccer players John Barry Nusum and Alex Pereira are competing with the national teams of Bermuda and Puerto Rico in World Cup and Olympic qualifying this spring.

Nusum, a first team NSCAA All American in 1999, was recently called up to the full Bermuda national team. A native of Devonshire, Bermuda and a former member of the Under-23 National Team, Nusum will compete with the National Team in World Cup and Olympic qualifying. Nusum's first match will be a March 19 home match vs. the British Virgin Islands for 2002 World Cup qualifying. The Bermuda squad will then take on Panama and Cuba in Olympic qualifying on April 6 and 7 in Panama.

As a sophomore in 1999, Nusum produced one of the most successful single season point productions in Furman history. Nusum, who scored 17 goals while tallying nine assists, placed third on the Furman single season points chart with 43. One of the most exciting players in the region, Nusum finished 11th in the nation in points. Nusum was also a first team All-South region selection and a first team All-Southern Conference pick. He was honored as one of the top four forwards in Division I with the NSCAA All American award.

Alex Pereira is a junior who saw action in five matches and recorded one assist on the year. Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Pereira trained throughout February with the Puerto Rico national team. The squad competed in Copa Puerto Rico 2000 with the Tampa Bay Mutiny, Dinamo Minsk of Belarus, and the under-23 Costa Rican national team. Pereira started all three matches in that tournament. Pereira will compete with the Puerto Rican national team against Aruba in World Cup qualifying on March 18 in Puerto Rico.

"This is a great opportunity for these two kids to really develop their skills and play against some tough international competition," said Furman head coach Doug Allison.

Furman is coming off its best season in school history as it advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament and finished with a 21-2-1 overall record. The Paladins finished the regular season ranked third in the nation by Soccer America.