September 21, 2001
GREENVILLE -- The Furman women's soccer team defeated Davidson 4-1 Friday night at Eugene Stone Soccer Stadium in its SoCon opener as sophomore Danielle Petro led the Lady Paladins with two goals and an assist.
Furman gained control early as Petro fired a shot from 18 yards out after escaping two Lady Wildcat defenders at the 5:17 mark of the first half. Furman extended the lead to 2-0 at the 25:58 mark as Petro lofted a quick free kick over the Davidson defensive line to a dashing Melissa Turner, who slotted the ball into the net.
Petro added her second goal of the night on a similar play to her first goal at the 34:44 mark. After receiving a pass from Katie Carson, she turned and drilled a 20-yard shot into the back of the net. Furman's shutout stood for only another two minutes as Davidson's Denielle Erikson scored on a free kick from 25 yards out at the 36:23 to end the first half scoring.
Furman's Lindsey Facciolo added an insurance goal in the second half at the 69:40 mark as she solely beat several Davidson defenders before driving a shot into the goal.
Furman outshot Davidson 18-12 on the night as the Lady Paladins improve to 4-2 overall, 1-0 in the Southern Conference. Davidson falls to 0-6, 0-1 in league play.
"I was impressed with out performance today," said Furman head coach Brian Lee. "We finally showed today the type of team that we are. We need to continue with the same kind of intensity Sunday against UNCG. Davidson is a good team, they are just going through a tough time right now. (Davidson head coach) Kevin Hundley does a great job with his teams and I know he will have them playing better by the end of the season."
Furman's win extended its winning streak over Davidson to six matches and extended its Southern Conference regular season winning streak to 19 matches. Furman also owns an 18 match home regular season winning streak.
The Lady Paladins, ranked eighth in the Southeast Region, will host UNCG, ranked tenth, on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. The match will be a rematch of the 2000 SoCon Women's Soccer Tournament Championship in which UNCG upset then-13th ranked Furman 1-0. Furman has won two of the last three against the Spartans.
Scoring:
Shots: Furman -- 18; Davidson-- 12.
Corner Kicks: Furman -- 6; Davidson-- 2.
Saves: Furman -- 8; Davidson-- 9.
Fouls: Furman -- 14; Davidson-- 12.