Greenville, S.C. – Furman was awarded a penalty kick on VAR review with 10 seconds remaining and senior
Diego Hernandez converted from the spot to rally the Paladins to a 2-2 draw versus Memphis Saturday night on Seagraves Field at Stone Soccer Stadium.
With the Paladins trailing 2-1 in the final seconds of the match, Hernandez drove a ball towards the right side of the box and Furman's
Luke Hutzell and Memphis goalkeeper Mathias Christensen crashed to the turf. The clock was stopped and upon review it was ruled that Hutzell's path was impeded by the goalkeeper and the Paladins were awarded a penalty kick. After the game clock was reset to 89:50, Hernandez drilled his spot kick into the left-hand corner to give the Paladins a share of the points on Senior Night.
"I'm super proud of the way we fought back to earn a draw against a very good opponent," said Paladin head coach
Brandon Tucker.
Diego Hernandez, our senior captain gets a goal and an assist tonight. All the seniors did a great job and provided the leadership we need. We're excited to start conference play next week."
Memphis, ranked No. 10 in the RPI, took the early lead in the fifth minute when Henrique Cruz headed Dino Stavros' cross into the back of the net for his first goal of the season. The Paladins outshot the Tigers 12-7 in the opening half, but Christensen came up with seven saves to send the match to halftime at 1-0.
Sophomore
Braden Dunham provided the equalizer for the Paladins at the 63:04 mark when Hernandez curled a free kick towards the edge of the six-yard box. Dunham nodded the shot into the left side of the net for his first of the season.
Memphis (4-1-1) regained the advantage at 69:28. Miller Lashlee fed a pass to Stavros near the top of the box and his right-footed strike beat Furman's
Aaron Salinas to the right side of the net. Christensen stopped nine shots prior to Hernandez's game-tying penalty kick in the final minute. The goal marked the fourth of the season for the midfielder from Mesquite, Texas.
Salinas posted two saves in goal for the Paladins, who managed a 21-11 margin in total shot attempts and 11-4 advantage in shots on target.
Furman (2-1-4) is idle until next Saturday when it hosts the Mercer Bears in the Southern Conference opener. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. on Seagraves Field at Stone Stadium.
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