November 2, 1999

FURMAN WOMEN'S SOCCER DOWNS WESTERN CAROLINA 4-0;

ADVANCES TO SOCON SEMIS

GREENVILLE, SC -- The top seeded Furman women's soccer team defeated Western Carolina 4-0 Tuesday night at Eugene Stone Soccer Stadium on the strength of two Lindsey Facciolo goals to advance to the semifinals of the Southern Conference Tournament.

Furman senior Melissa Sutton scored the first goal of the night at the 8:20 mark. She finished a ball that had been headed by fellow senior captain Tara Brexel. The goal gave Sutton her 101st point of her career. She became the first women's soccer player to join the 100 point club.

Eighth seeded Western Carolina held Furman in check through the first half as the Lady Paladins entered intermission with the 1-0 lead.

Redshirt Freshman Lindsey Facciolo took charge in the second half as the Tampa, Fla., native connected on two goals in a seven minute time span early in the second half. Facciolo's first goal came off an assist from Sutton, while her second was off a give-and-go with Kaye Brownlee. For Brownlee, the assist was her 17th of the season. Brownlee is currently second in the nation in assists per match.

Furman's final goal came with only 14 seconds remaining as Diana Poore drilled the ball to the back corner of the net on a breakaway off a Nicole Malseed pass. Poore, who has spent three seasons as Furman's sweeper and was seeing her first-ever action at forward, scored her first career goal.

"This win gets us started on the right foot," said Furman head coach Brian Lee. "We have to stay focused and win Saturday in order to give us a shot at the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament."

"This is by far the best Furman team that I have ever seen," said Western Carolina assistant coach Debbie Hensley, who served as assistant at Furman over the last three seasons. "I am excited to see what this team can do if they make it to the NCAA Tournament."

The win is the Lady Paladins' ninth straight and sets a school record for consecutive wins. Furman improves to 18-2 while Western Carolina finishes its first-ever season at 10-9-1.

Furman will play Wofford Saturday at 5 p.m. at UNCG Soccer Stadium in Greensboro, N.C. In other Southern Conference action tonight, Davidson downed Appalachian State 2-0, Georgia Southern upset UNC Greensboro 2-1, and Wofford edged College of Charleston 3-2. The championship match of the 1999 Southern Conference Tournament will be Sunday at 2 p.m. in Greensboro, N.C., and will carry an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Scoring:

FU - Melissa Sutton (Tara Brexel, Melissa Turner assists) 8:20

FU - Lindsey Facciolo (Melissa Sutton assist) 49:15

FU - Lindsey Facciolo (Kaye Brownlee assist) 56:25

FU - Diana Poore (Nicole Malseed, Natalie Muro assists) 89:46

Shots: FU - 26, WCU - 2

Corner Kicks: FU - 10, WCU - 2

Saves: FU - 1, WCU - 11

Fouls: FU - 8, WCU - 13

SoCon Quarterfinals

#1 Furman 4, #8 W. Carolina 0

#2 Davidson 2, #7 Appalachian State 0

#6 Georgia Southern 2, #3 UNCG 1

#5 Wofford 3, #4 College of Charleston 2