Charlotte, N.C. – Donnie Smith scored in the 12th minute and Gavin Dawson recorded seven saves to lead the Charlotte 49ers to a 1-0 victory over Furman in non-conference men's soccer on Saturday evening.

The 49ers controlled play from the opening kickoff outshooting Furman 4-1 and earning five corner kicks in the first 11 minutes before Smith netted his first goal of the season at the 11:36 mark by directing an Anthony Perez pass past Paladin keeper Alec Kann for the only tally of the match.

Furman turned the flow of play in its favor during the second half after being outshot 12-2 before intermission, but late efforts from Fabien Vorbe and Josh Lietch were stopped by Dawson and Brooks Duff had a second half shot flash wide of the post.

Dawson earned the shutout to push the 49ers to 5-4-0 on the season while Furman slipped to 5-4-1.  Kann notched six saves for Furman in the loss. 

Charlotte finished the match with a 16-15 edge in shots while each team totaled eight shots on goal.  The 49ers managed a 10-2 edge in corner kicks.  There were four yellow cards handed out, including three in the second half.

Furman returns home on Tuesday to host the Campbell Camels.  Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Stone Soccer Stadium.

Fans can follow Furman soccer all season long with live statistics and game reports at www.furmanpaladins.com as well as in-game updates of home matches at www.twitter.com/FurmanPaladins.