Paladins Men’s Soccer defends home field against UNC-Greensboro, wins annual “Quinn game” 1-0
The Furman Paladins Men’s soccer squad defeated UNC-Greensboro 1-0 in a defensive battle in Greenville on Saturday evening.
The game was Furman’s 8th annual “Quinn Game”, created and played to promote Down Syndrome awareness.
The games namesake (and major Paladin soccer fan) Quinn Cronin, daughter of former Furman soccer player McNeil Cronin, was in attendance at the match and was celebrated by the crowd and players before kickoff at Stone Stadium.
No doubt buoyed by the courage and enthusiasm of the 11 year old Quinn in the stands, the Paladins got down to business against the Spartans. It was a defensive matchup throughout the entire contest as neither team could break the scoreless draw across the first half of play.
The first 15 minutes of the 2nd half were a similar story to the first half, as neither team could gain the advantage on the other.
Finally in the 63rd minute Furman defenseman Slade Starnes broke the tie with his first goal of the season, heading an assist from fellow Paladin defenseman Josh Hosie into the back of the net to put Furman up 1-0 at the 62:08 mark.
Both defenses tightened up for the remainder of the contest, not allowing another score as the Paladins squeaked out a hard fought 1-0 victory.
Furman goalkeeper Aaron Salinas and UNC-Greensboro keeper Jarrett Payne each had three saves for the contest. Salinas pitched a shutout for the Paladins while Payne allowed one goal for the Spartans.
The Paladins have gone 4-1-1 in their last 6 matches and will look to keep that positive momentum rolling as they turn around to face USC-Upstate at 7:00 PM EST in Stone Stadium in Greenville on Tuesday night.
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