August 12, 2002
GREENVILLE, SC -- The Furman women's soccer team reported to campus Monday and will begin preseason workouts on Wednesday in preparation for its 2002 season.
The Lady Paladins return five starters off a team that posted a 13-7-1 record and claimed a share of the Southern Conference regular season championship, its third straight title.
Furman will be led by five seniors, including NSCAA Scholar Athlete All-American and first team All-Southern conference midfielder Katie Carson. Junior Emily Turgeon will look to build on her record setting freshman season, which saw her lead the nation in scoring with 63 total points as she was named Southern Conference Player-of-the-Year and Freshman-of-the-Year.
The Lady Paladins also welcome an incoming class ranked as the 12th best in the nation by Soccer Buzz. Furman's class features ten freshmen, including six members of the Region II and III Olympic Development Program (ODP) Teams and Pools, and two transfers.
Included in the Lady Paladin freshman class are the North Carolina and South Carolina Players-of-the-Year in Andie Hinshaw and Stacy Simpson respectively. The Lady Paladins also welcome two transfers, Ashley Murray from Texas A&M and April Raymer from Wake Forest.
"I believe that we have one of the nationšs best recruiting classes, and I am excited to see what they will add to this program," said head coach Brian Lee.
Furman's home schedule is highlighted with non-conference matches against Auburn, Georgetown, Charlotte, and Michigan State. The Lady Paladins also face challenging road matches as they travel to Georgia and Clemson as well as Southern Conference rivals Western Carolina, UNC Greensboro, and Davidson.
Lee, who enters his ninth season as head coach, has high expectations for this season.
"This year's team is a lot different than last year's, but our goals will remain the same," said Lee. "Each year we want to win the Southern Conference and earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament. Hopefully, we will be able to achieve these goals and make a deep run into the tournament."