Spartanburg, S.C. – Freshman Carlie Couch scored in the first half and Jamie Alexander in the second as top-seeded Furman topped No. 4 seed Samford, 2-0, in Friday's first semifinal of the Southern Conference Women's Soccer Championship at Wofford's Snyder Field.  With the win, the Paladins will make their second straight finals appearance and 12th overall.

Furman (16-3-2) will take on No. 2 seed Elon on Sunday at 1 p.m.  The game will air live on ESPN3 with Darren Goldwater and Charlie Slagel on the call.

Furman got the scoring started in the eighth minute as the last two SoCon freshmen of the year connected on the first goal of the game.  Stephanie DeVita, the 2012 winner, sent a pass to Couch, this season's top rookie, on the right flank.  Couch then deposited her 12th goal of the season to the far post with a sliding shot to give the Paladins the early advantage at the 7:41 mark.

With just over 11 minutes left in the first half, Samford (13-6-2) had its best opportunity of the frame when Hallie Georgi found Malcanisha Kelley in stride for a one-on-one with Furman keeper Rose Hull.  Hull came off her line and smothered Kelley's attempt from 15 yards out to keep the Bulldogs off the board.

Alexander made it a 2-0 game shortly after halftime, blasting a shot from about 20 yards out that Samford keeper Melissa Montgomery got hands on but couldn't corral in the 48th minute.  Montgomery appeared to make the stop, but the ball squirted through her hands and she couldn't keep it out of the back of the net despite a diving effort.  DeVita picked up her second assist of the night on the play.

After getting off just six shots in the first half, Samford rattled off 13 in the second frame but saw several dangerous opportunities go begging.

In the 69th minute, Michelle Moll sent in a long-distance line drive that just missed the upper right 90.  Minutes later, Sara Smeltzer collected a Shanika Thomas corner kick and sent a low liner just wide of the far post.

Samford had another good scoring chance thwarted in the 76th minute, when Trine Taule's shot off a Jordan Johnson corner kick was blocked and cleared after a scrum in the box.

Furman had an outstanding chance to pad its lead with 13 minutes left, as Couch got loose on a breakaway. Samford keeper Dale Steinagle, who come on after Montgomery's miscue, came off her line to snuff the opportunity with the close-range save.

Samford had one last solid scoring chance, as Molly Pittman put a header on frame in the 80th minute, but Hull backpedaled and punched the ball over the crossbar for the save.

Hull finished with seven saves for her seventh shutout of the season. She improved to 12-1-1 on the year and lowered her SoCon-leading goals against average to 0.33.

Montgomery and Steinagle finished with two saves each, with Montgomery allowing both goals to fall to 6-3-2.

Samford finished with a 19-10 shot advantage and an 8-2 edge in corner kicks.

Furman enters the championship match having won five straight games and having gone unbeaten in its last seven matches.  The Paladins have recorded three consecutive shutouts and allowed only one goal in their last seven matches.