Greenville, S.C. -- Lucas Diniz scored in the 33rd minute and Stetson held off a 10-man Furman squad in the Paladins' non-conference finale Friday night on Seagraves Field at Stone Soccer Stadium.

After Furman controlled possession and compiled a 5-0 shots advantage over the first half hour of play, Stetson scored against the run of play at the 32:34 mark.  Arturo Roosen fed a pass to Diniz behind the Furman defense down the center of the field and the forward flicked a shot over Jonathan Smith as the Paladin goalkeeper charged off of his line.  The ball trickled into the net for Diniz's seventh goal in seven matches this season.

Just moments after Stetson netted the go-ahead goal, Furman's Adrian McInnis was shown a red card for his challenge on the Hatters' Bernardo Carabelli in the midfield.  Carabelli was attended to by medical personnel before being transported to a local hospital.

The 10-man Paladins managed to claim the majority of possession over the final 55 minutes of the match, but Furman recorded just three shots on goal and rarely troubled Hatters keeper Paul Ladwig.  Freshman Josiah Baker made several dangerous runs into the 18-yard box in the second half and twice went to the ground only to be denied his appeal for a penalty kick.

Furman finished the match with a 9-6 margin in total shots, while the Hatters held a 5-3 edge in shots on target.  Ladwig totaled three saves in the victory.  Smith stopped four shots for the Paladins.

The most dangerous scoring opportunity for the Paladins came in the early minutes of the game when Eli Pinner volleyed a shot over the bar and Baker shot wide after a weaving run into the box.  In the 29th minute, Noah Teplitzky hit a curling shot from the left side that looked bound for goal before Ladwig smothered the effort with a diving save to his left.

The injury-riddled Paladins will be idle for a week before returning to action in the Southern Conference opener at VMI on Saturday, September 26.


Jordan Caskey, Furman Sports Information