Post Championship Interviews And Highlights Video

Johnson City, Tenn. -- The second-seeded Furman men's soccer team captured its 13th Southern Conference Tournament title and second consecutive crown with a 1-0 victory over No. 4 seed ETSU on Sunday afternoon at Summers-Taylor Stadium in Johnson City, Tenn.

With the victory, Furman (8-5-5) secured the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship.  The Paladins will find out their first round destination and opponent on the NCAA Selection Show on Monday, November 16, at 1 p.m. on NCAA.com.

Junior Lewis Hawke, who had scored the winning goal on a header in Furman's 2014 SoCon title clinching victory over Mercer, put the Paladins in front at the 9:26 mark.  Freshman Noah Teplitzky beat his defender down the left flank and delivered a left-footed cross to the top of the six-yard box.  Hawke leaped over a defender to head the ball inside the right post for his fourth score of the season.

Furman continued to pressure the Bucs throughout the first half as they built an 8-5 edge in shots attempts and earned four corner kicks to none for ETSU (8-7-4). Kyle McLagan, who finished with five total shots, threatened with headers on several Marco Carrizales corner kicks before the Paladins carried a 1-0 lead into the break.

ETSU took control of the possession in the second half by outshooting the Paladins 14-5, but the tournament's most outstanding  player Sven Lissek rose to the occasion by making four of his six saves in the final 45 minutes. The Sewau, Germany, native tipped one shot over the bar and providing diving saves on two others to maintain the 1-0 scoreline.  Late in the half, Mitchell Cecatiello slipped through on the right side of the box, but Lissek made a charging save to deflect the ball clear of danger.

"It's always tough to win this time of year and we were able to get two shutouts in a row," said Paladin head coach Doug Allison, who has led Furman to eight SoCon Tournament championships in 21 seasons. "I'm really happy for the kids.  Lewis got back-to-back winners in the SoCon finals and our defense helped us win the championship."

ETSU finished with a 19-13 edge in total shots and 6-3 advantage in shots on goal, while both squads earned seven corner kicks.

Lissek stopped six shots to record his seventh shutout of the year and move into sole possession of second place on the SoCon's career charts with his 28th career clean sheet.

For the second straight season, Furman did not allow a goal during SoCon Tournament play.  The Paladins claimed three consecutive 1-0 wins en route to last year's crown before using a 0-0 draw and 1-0 victory to take the 2015 championship.

Lissek was joined on the All-SoCon Tournament Team by Carrizales, Evan De Ycaza and Wellford Moore.


All-Tournament Team
Ian Antley, Mercer
Jordan Duru, Mercer
Ricky Chavez, UNCG
Noah DeAngelo, UNCG
Corentin Ohlmann, ETSU
James Smith, ETSU
Jonny Sutherland, ETSU
Marco Carrizales, Furman
Evan De YCaza, Furman
Sven Lissek, Furman
Wellford Moore, Furman
 
Most Outstanding Player
Sven Lissek, Furman


Jordan Caskey, Furman Sports Information