October 18, 1997
GREENVILLE, S.C. - Liz Bielefeld scored three goals and recorded two assists as the Furman women's soccer team set a school record for wins in a season as they rolled to a 5-1 victory over East Tennessee State Saturday at Eugene Stone Soccer Stadium.
The match began as a struggle for the Lady Paladins as East Tennessee State got on the board first when Rebecca Eisenburg placed a shot just over the head of goalkeeper Laura Meisenheimeer at the 6:08 mark in the first half. The Lady Buccaneers played solid and held their lead for most of the first half.
Liz Bielefeld tied the socre for the Lady Paladins with a goal off a direct kick with 37:23 elapsed in the first half. Bielefeld, starting at forward for the first time in her career, continued her dominance in the second half with two more goals. She also is credited with assists on goals by Leah Versteegen and Holly Aure. Her eight points is second-best in Lady Paladin history and it was the first hat-trick in her four-year career. With her performance, Bielefeld passes sophomore Melissa Sutton as the Lady Paladins leading scorer this season.
The win halts a two-match losing streak for the Lady Paladins and gives Furman it's tenth win of the season, a new school record. Furman is now 10-6-1 overall, 2-3 in the Southern Conference. With the loss East Tennessee State falls to 1-13-1, 0-6 in the Southern Conference. The Lady Paladins will host Appalachian State Sunday at 4:30.
"Liz Bielefeld was fantastic today," said Furman head coach Brian Lee. "East Tennessee State came in here and played a great game today, especially in the first half. As a team, we need to step up our level of play in our last three matches and in the tournament if we want to finish on a high note this year."
Scoring:
Shots on Goal: Furman - 31; ETSU - 7.
Corner Kicks: Furman - 10; ETSU - 2.
Saves: Furman - 5; ETSU - 10.
Fouls: Furman - 5; ETSU - 9.