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No. 5 UNCG, No. 3 Furman advance to the SoCon Championship
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – No. 2 seed UNCG and No. 5 seed UNCG each won semifinal matches at the Southern Conference Men's Soccer Championship at East Tennessee State University’s Summers-Taylor Stadium on Friday and will square off in Sunday’s title game at 1 p.m.
No. 5 UNCG 1, No. 1 Mercer 0 (Photo gallery)
Behind the lone goal of the game from Alex Henderson, the No. 5-seeded UNCG Spartans upset No. 1-seeded Mercer 1-0 in Friday night’s semifinal of the Southern Conference Women’s Soccer Championship. The Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, native put the goal on the board in the 25th minute, sending it in past Mercer’s all-conference second team goalkeeper JR DeRose.
Mercer, the No. 1 seed thanks to an 12-4-2 regular-season conference mark, held the shooting advantage, 15-8 over the Spartans but even after shots from eight separate players, were not able to connect to put the ball in the back of the net.
The win sends the Spartans back to the SoCon Championship final. Last year, they lost in the finals to Mercer in penalty kicks, 2-3. Mercer’s season ends at 12-5-2.
No. 3 Furman 2 (OT), No. 2 ETSU 1 (Photo gallery)
The Furman Paladins, the No. 3 seed, had goals from two different people, including one from All-Conference first team honoree, Laurence Wyke, and downed No. 2-seed ETSU 2-1 in overtime in the second semifinal match.
After ending the first half in a 0-0 tie, Furman’s Mile Fenton broke through the Bucs defense in the 46th minute to put the Paladins on the board. The Bucs answered in the 54th minute with a goal off a penalty kick by Cameron Woodfin, sending the game into overtime.
The tie was broken in the 97th minute when All-Conference first team honoree Laurence Wyke sent the ball into the back of the net for his seventh goal of the season, helping the Paladins reach the final for the first time since 2015. ETSU’s season ends 9-7-1.
In the regular-season matchup, UNCG beat Furman 1-0 in Greensboro on Oct. 27.
2018 Men’s Soccer Championship
Wednesday, Oct. 31
First Round (at higher seeds)
Match 1: No. 6 Belmont 2, No. 7 VMI 1
Saturday, Nov. 4 Quarterfinals (at higher seeds)
Match 2: No. 5 UNCG 1, No. 4 Wofford 0
Match 3: No. 3 Furman 4, No. 6 Belmont 2
Friday, Nov. 2 Semifinals (Summers-Taylor Stadium, Johnson City, Tenn.)
Match 5: No. 5 UNCG 1, No. 1 Mercer 0
Match 6: No. 3 Furman 2 (OT), No. 2 ETSU 1
Sunday, Nov. 11 Final (Summers-Taylor Stadium; Johnson City, Tenn.)
Match 7: No. 5 UNCG vs. No. 3 Furman, 1 p.m.
*all times Eastern