Nov. 12, 2007
Greenville, S.C. -- Southern Conference champion Furman will travel to Knoxville, Tenn., to face 22nd-ranked Tennessee in the opening round of the 2007 NCAA Women's Soccer Championship on Friday evening, it was revealed during the tournament selection show on ESPNews Monday night.
Match times for Friday's Furman vs. Tennessee and Clemson vs. Charlotte matches at newly-built Regal Stadium have yet to be announced.
The matchup with host Tennessee marks Furman's third straight NCAA Tournament in which it has drawn the Lady Vols in the opening round. Tennessee blanked the Lady Paladins 5-0 in 2002 and 2-0 in the opening round of the 2004 tourney. The Lady Paladins, who wrapped up the Southern Conference's automatic bid to the Big Dance by downing top-seed UNC Greensboro on Sunday in the SoCon Tournament finals, will be making their fifth appearance in the tournament.
Furman made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1999 when it was chosen as a first round host. UCF edged the Lady Paladins at Stone Soccer Stadium 1-0. The following year Furman received an at-large bid, but dropped a 3-1 first round decision at Duke.
This year's Furman squad sports a 16-5-1 record and is led by SoCon Player-of-the-Year and the league's leading scorer Anna Betton. The forward has netted 13 goals, added 10 assists and registered 36 total points in 22 matches. She is supported in the attack by fellow first team All-SoCon pick Rachel Fry. A junior, Fry has scored 12 goals and notched seven assists on the season. The SoCon Tournament's Most Outstanding Player leads the league with five game-winning goals.
Tennessee enters the match at 13-4-2 on the season. The Lady Vols dropped a 2-0 decision to nationally-ranked South Carolina in the SEC Quarterfinals in their last match on November 7. Forward Kylee Rossi leads Tennessee with 10 goals and five assists.
Friday's Furman vs. Tennessee winner will face the Clemson vs. Charlotte winner in Sunday's second round match. Charlotte, the automatic qualifier from the Atlantic 10 Conference, is 16-4-1 on the season. The 49ers topped Clemson (9-5-5) 3-1 earlier this season at the Carolinas' Cup.
Livestats for the first and second round matches will be provided through CSTV's GameTracker. Game times will be posted on www.furmanpaladins.com when they become available. The full 64-team bracket is available at http://www.ncaasports.com.
