Lexington, Va. – Junior
Norah Roller netted a pair of second-half goals to help Furman to its first Southern Conference win with a 2-1 victory over VMI on Sunday afternoon at Patchin Field.
The victory extended the Paladins' unbeaten streak to nine matches as Furman improved to 7-1-2 overall and 1-0-1 in the SoCon. VMI dropped to 1-9-1 overall and 0-2 in league play.
After a scoreless first half that featured few clear-cut scoring opportunities for either team, Furman took the lead in the 51
st minute.
Bri Pinasco raced down the right side before centering a pass to Roller. The forward accelerated by a defender near the top of the box and slotted her shot past VMI goalkeeper Maren Ryberg at 50:25 for her fourth goal of the season.
The Keydets found an equalizer less than five minutes later. After VMI was awarded an indirect free kick in the box, Mackenzie Hobik fired a shot towards the right side of the net that was deflected by Paladin goalkeeper
Reese DeJong. VMI's Madeline Karsonovich won a scramble on the goal line to knock the loose ball in at 55:04 to even the match.
With Furman pressing for a go-ahead goal in the 63
rd minute, VMI attempted to clear the ball out of the box. The clearance attempt deflected off
Maddie Massie at the top of the box and towards the goal where Roller pounced on the loose ball before depositing a right-footed shot into the left-hand corner for her second goal of the afternoon and fifth of the season.
"Anytime we go on the road in the SoCon and get three points it's a good day," said Paladin head coach
Andrew Burr. "We've had to deal with several injuries lately, but we've had a lot of people step up and contribute.
Norah Roller kept the pressure on their defense and got a couple of good goals for us."
DeJong recorded three saves to earn the victory in goal for the Paladins while Ryberg finished with eight stops for VMI. Furman compiled a 20-11 advantage in total shot attempts on the day and posted a 10-4 margin in shots on goal.
The Paladins are back in action on Friday night when they trek to Cullowhee, N.C., to face the two-time defending SoCon regular season champions Western Carolina.
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