October 16, 1999

Furman Men's Soccer Defeats UNCG 3-1

Greensboro, N.C. -- The 11th-ranked Furman men's soccer team won a pivital Southern Conference matchup as they downed UNC Greensboro 3-1 Saturday night in a battle of the SoCon's only two unbeaten teams. Furman improves to 5-0 in the conference and takes a commanding lead in the Southern Conference regular season race with three matches to play.

Furman sophomore Vaughan Bethell put Furman on top early in the first half as he scored at the 8:19 mark. Jack Handy's free kick from just across midfield was headed by Carl Junot to Bethell for the goal. The goal was Bethell's first of the season.

Six minutes later, Handy was flagged with a foul on UNCG's Chris Goos, setting up a penalty kick. Junior Justin Wisdo drilled the penalty kick past Paladin keeper Scott Blount to even the score at 1-1. The goal was only the second first half goal allowed by the Paladins all season.

Furman continued the early goal flurry as Carl Junot connected off a John Barry Nusum, Seth Marks double assist to put the Paladins on top for good at 2-1.

The score remained 2-1 for most of the match unitl Stephen Rodriguez put the match out of reach at the 80:37 mark in the second half. John Barry Nusum and Clint Hill played a game of give-and-go before slotting a pass to Rodriguez in the box to set up the final goal.

"I am very proud of our players," said Furman head coach Doug Allison. "We played a solid match today and took a big step toward winning the Southern Conference. We need to stay focused and keep playing well and I think this team can do some great things come tournament time."

A total of 46 fouls were called and 10 yellow cards issued on the match as UNCG outshot Furman 12-8 on the night.

Furman improves to 11-1-1 on the season, 5-0 in the Southern Conference. UNCG falls to 8-6, 5-1 in the conference. Furman is ranked 11th by the NSCAA and 13th by Soccer America and Soccer Times. Furman has not allowed more than one goal in any match this season.

Scoring
FU - Vaughan Bethell (Carl Junot, Jack Handy assists) 8:19
UNCG - Justin Wisdo (penalty kick) 14:53
FU - Carl Junot (John Barry Nusum, Seth Marks assists) 18:15
FU - Stephen Rodriguez (John Barry Nusum, Clint Hill assists) 80:37

Shots: FU - 8, UNCG - 12
Corner Kicks: FU - 3, UNCG - 3
Saves: FU - 4, UNCG - 0
Fouls: FU - 20, UNCG - 26