Greenville, S.C. – Liberty, down to 10 men, scored in the 79
th minute to hand Furman a 3-2 defeat in the semifinal round of the Southern Conference Men's Soccer Championship Sunday evening on Seagraves Field at Stone Stadium.
The No. 5 seed Flames (7-7-3) advance to the SoCon Championship Match where they will face No. 3 seed UNC Greensboro next weekend in Greensboro, N.C., for the league title and automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
With the match tied at 2-2, Furman looked to have swung momentum its way before the Flames broke down the right side and Lachlan Middleton lined a shot across the face of goal and into the net at 78:33 to put his team in front. Liberty held off Furman's attack in the final 10 minutes to eliminate the Paladins.
"It's a tough way to lose, but I'm so proud of this team, especially our seniors," said Paladin head coach
Brandon Tucker. "They've been through a lot this season but have continued to fight."
Furman (7-4-6) took a 1-0 lead in the 38
th minute on a rocketed shot off the foot of
Braden Dunham from outside the box to put the Paladins in front. Liberty equalized at 42:14 when Goncalo Sousa scored an unassisted goal.
Less than five minutes after the restart, Pablo Matavele scored the go-ahead goal off a pass from Ronnie Gorman to give Liberty its first lead. Dan Rose made a pair of spectacular saves just past the hour mark to preserve Liberty's advantage, but the Flames were reduced to 10 men when Sousa tackled
Diego Hernandez from behind at the 68:10 mark.
Furman drew a foul in the box at 71:53 and Dunham doubled his total from the penalty spot to even the match at 2-2.
The Paladins outshot Liberty 14-7, including 5-4 on shots on goal. Rose stopped three shots for the Flames while
Aaron Salinas recorded one save.
The match featured 32 fouls, a red card, and nine yellow cards.
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