Men’s soccer was the highlight of Furman’s homecoming week activities with a high-voltage Friday night scrimmage. Purple’s young team netted six goals to beat White’s two goals from captain Cole McLagan. The team’s largely rookie squad was well-connected and powerful but noticeably out of normal in-season form.
Purple’s Shaun-Chris Joash, Dylan Lane and freshman forward Jake Raine combined for six goals to take an early and constant lead over White. Joash, a Southern Conference All-Freshman selection, led Purple’s offensive game with four goals. Raine is an exciting addition to the smaller Paladin offense, coming from Stoke, England as the Repton School’s all-time leading goal scorer with 83 goals in 83 appearances.
“All the boys missed having fans in the stadium,” said Joash about Friday’s high energy audience. “The team is definitely starting to click and it was a great performance from Purple to get the win.”
White’s late energy came largely from junior forward Garrett Singletary who assisted one of two goals for senior captain Cole McLagan. In his final year as a Paladin, McLagan looks to continue his dominance as the team’s top goal scorer and quickest defensive player. White’s defensive line, made up of veterans McLagan, Arnor Adalsteinsson and Luke Tandy, missed opportunities and lost match-up battles that created open lines for Purple’s offense. Last year’s standouts Tommy Kay and Alfredo Diaz-Santillan were noticeably absent from play, watching the scrimmage from the sidelines.
Although only in scrimmage play, the squad’s hot-headed attitude made an appearance in the form of cautions for both sides, most notably from redshirt sophomore Keaton Hubbard. The passionate but controlled playing style is something to look forward to as the ‘Dins take on their next five months of training before opening day.
The men’s squad opens play at ETSU on Mar. 13 before welcoming rival Wofford to Stone Stadium for the season’s home opener on Tuesday, Mar. 16. The short regular season will conclude with a home game against VMI on Mar. 27 before a final road game at Belmont only three days later. Non-conference play is being considered to extend the season but will likely not include state rivals South Carolina or Clemson as past seasons have. Men’s soccer will play in hopes of continuing their dominance in and defending last year’s regular season Southern Conference title.
