Nov. 4, 2011

Box Score

GREENSBORO, N.C. - With less than two minutes remaining in double overtime, Samford soccer player Sarah Wilkinson scored the golden goal in the 109th minute Friday to lift the Bulldogs to a 1-0 victory against the Furman Lady Paladins in the semifinal round of the 2011 Southern Conference Tournament.

"I'm so proud of this team right now," said Samford head coach Todd Yelton. "These players just fight non-stop and they never give up. They had a great sense of belief today and no matter what happens they are always going to be in a position to win."

Wilkinson's game-winning goal was her third of the season and helped Samford (13-5-2) advance to Sunday's championship match where the Bulldogs will square off against either No. 3-seed College of Charleston or No. 7-seed Georgia Southern at noon (CDT) live on ESPN3.

On Wilkinson's golden goal, she stole an errant pass in the box, stepped around a defender and fired the ball into an empty net.

"Sarah's been our emotional leader all season long and whenever we need a big goal, she seems to come up with it," Yelton said. "I'm extremely happy for her in getting the game-winning goal. I'm proud of all the hard work she's put in this season and she deserves this to happen. She's definitely been our most clutch goal-scorer as of late."

Samford advanced to the SoCon Tournament championship game for the second straight season and moved to 5-0 all-time against Furman (12-8-2). Friday's victory marked the second time this year that the Bulldogs tallied a double-overtime win against the Lady Paladins. On Oct. 9, Samford's Trine Taule scored the decisive goal in the fifth minute of double overtime to earn a 2-1 victory.

The Bulldogs' Alyssa Whitehead made a match-saving stop with only 2:05 remaining in regulation as she tallied a diving save on a penalty-kick attempt from India Robinson. Furman was awarded the possible game-winning penalty kick when a Samford defender committed a foul in the box.

On the attempt, Robinson sent a low, straight kick on goal with hopes of catching Whitehead leaning to either side, but the Bulldogs' First-Team All-SoCon goalkeeper made a perfect play on the ball to send the match into overtime.

"Whenever there's ever a penalty kick at the end of a match like that, it's hardly ever a positive result," said Yelton. "Alyssa made a great save on it and she preserved the season for us. I think that she just further proved that she is one of the top goalkeepers in the nation."

Whitehead, the reigning SoCon Player of the Month, tallied her seventh shutout of the season and increased her school-record total in the category to 33.

Wilkinson's game-winning goal was her team-leading eighth of the year and extended Samford's victory streak to nine straight matches. The Bulldogs' current winning streak tied the school record which was achieved in 2007.

Samford's offense was paced by Wilkinson on Friday. The Bulldogs' senior from Euless, Texas, rattled off five shot attempts with four being on goal. True freshman Joy Grove followed with two shots of her own.

Furman was led by Colleen Lynch's three shot attempts, while the Lady Paladins' Dee Makris, Rachel Shelnutt and Hannah Stanifer all tallied two shots apiece.

"I thought that Andrew (Burr) definitely had his team ready to play today," Yelton said. "Furman always plays us tough and the last four times that we've played it's gone into overtime. They are definitely a quality side and Rachel Shelnutt was one of the best players in SoCon history. She was someone that soccer fans really enjoyed watching."

The Bulldogs outshot Furman 11-10 and registered five corner kicks as compared to only one from the Lady Paladins. Samford finished with five players logging the entire 108 minutes of the match. The Bulldogs' Shanika Thomas, Adrianne Mancino, Sabbath McKiernan-Allen, Katie Danehy and Whitehead all played the entire contest.

The Samford University soccer team will next be in action Sunday at noon (CDT) as the Bulldogs square off against either No. 3-seed College of Charleston or No. 7-seed Georgia Southern in the championship game of the 2011 SoCon Tournament being held at the UNCG Soccer Stadium.