No. 8 Marshall Triumphs Over Furman in NCAA Second Round
The Marshall men’s soccer team, ranked eighth, secured a convincing 4-0 victory against Furman on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The match took place at Hoops Family Field in Huntington, West Virginia. With this win, Marshall (12-1-7) moves on to face North Carolina State in the next round, while Furman ends the season with a record of 9-4-6.
The scoring began in the 22nd minute when a handball led to a penalty kick taken by Lineker Rodrigues dos Santos, who successfully placed the ball in the left corner, giving Marshall a 1-0 lead. As the first half drew to a close, the Thundering Herd scored three goals in quick succession, adding to their lead before halftime.
Haruhi Taneda executed a stunning bicycle kick at 39:09, followed by Rodrigues dos Santos, who scored again just under a minute later from near midfield. Tarik Pannolzer capped this explosive stretch with a powerful shot into the left corner of the goal in the 41st minute, bringing the halftime score to 4-0.
Furman had a chance to score just before the half when sophomore Caleb Johnson fired a shot on target, but it was saved by Marshall’s goalkeeper, Aleksa Janjic. In the second half, Reece Fragle tried to get one back for the Paladins with a shot in the 77th minute, but it was blocked. Ben Boxall also had an opportunity late in the game, though his shot went high.
For Furman, Aaron Salinas, who was recognized as the Southern Conference Goalkeeper of the Year, made one save during the match. Janjic recorded a save for Marshall as well. Overall, Marshall had the upper hand with 13 total shots compared to Furman’s 5, and they also led in corner kicks, 4-2.
