Aug. 31, 2004
Greenville, S.C. – Jessi Swaim scored her first goal of the season and added one assist as the South Carolina women’s soccer team defeated Furman 3-1 on Tuesday night. The score was reflective of a similar USC victory over the Lady Paladins two years ago in Greenville and improved the Gamecocks record to 2-1 on the season. The loss drops Furman to 0-2.
“I’m happy with our effort today and our team’s play coming off a loss on Sunday,” said USC head coach Shelley Smith. “We did very well to get good chances on goal and finished a couple of them. We took advantage of our opportunities.”
South Carolina went ahead in the first half on a goal from Swaim at 15:43. Swaim took the cross from freshman Lexi Randzazzo five yards out on the left side and knocked the ball past Furman goalkeeper Andie Rinshaw and off the right post to give USC a one-goal lead. The Gameocks controlled the majority of play in the first half with a 7-1 shot advantage.
Furman tied the match early in the second half in the 52nd minute with a short offensive spurt and a goal from Emily Krankowski. Nicky Darling played a cross back to Krankowski, who launched a shot from 10 yards out high and beyond the reach of USC goalkeeper Lindsay Thorstenson to put Furman on the scoreboard.
Carolina regained the lead quickly with Amanda Thurber scoring her first goal of the year at 59:15. A cross into the box from Swaim was controlled by Ashley Kirk, who played the ball back to Thurber, who drilled a shot over Rinshaw’s head to put USC on top 2-1. The assist for Kirk was her second of the year and Swaim’s first.
USC went ahead two goals on an own goal at 81:43. Swaim sent a cross into the box where Erin Sullivan was waiting but a Furman defender knocked the shot in from eight yards out.
USC controlled a majority of the play on the offensive side with a 14-6 shot advantage on the evening. Ashley Kirk led the way with five shots for Carolina with Swaim and Lentz accounting for two apiece. Thorstenson earned her first win in her first career match as a Gamecock and had two saves in goal. Twenty-one different players for USC saw action in the match vs. the Lady Paladins.
“I think we do have a lot more depth this year,” said Coach Smith. “The players that started us off did very well and they played a lot today. They had a great day as did a lot of our players. We have depth to call on when we need it.”
USC returns home this weekend with two non-conference matches. The Gamecocks host Houston on Friday at 7 p.m. with a 12:30 Sunday afternoon match vs. Iowa State. Friday night’s contest will be broadcast live on USCSPORTS.COM.
“I think we have improved a lot and raised our level of play,” said Coach Smith. “I look for us to continue to play at that level and be much more consistent for the entire 90 minutes. Furman’s a good team that shoots well and we did a good job to work together and defend.”
