Clemson Women’s Soccer Team to Play in Carolina’s Cup This Weekend in Charlotte

Sept. 12, 2007

Clemson, SC – The 17th-ranked Clemson women’s soccer team will travel to Charlotte, NC this weekend to compete in the Carolina’s Cup. The Lady Tigers will face Furman on Friday at 5:00 p.m. and will play tournament host UNC-Charlotte on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Both matches will be contested at Transamerica Field at the Irwin Belk Center in Charlotte, NC.

Clemson, ranked 17th by the NSCAA and 22nd and 25th by Soccer Buzz and Soccer America respectively, is 4-0 on the season. The Lady Tigers have played their first four matches at home at Riggs Field, defeating Liberty (4-0), Coastal Carolina (5-0), #23 Long Beach State (2-1) and Western Carolina (2-0.)

The Lady Tigers are led in scoring by senior forward Nuria Zufia and sophomore midfielder Molly Franklin, who have accumulated eight points apiece in Clemson’s first four matches. Zufia has netted four goals on the season, while Franklin has a goal and six assists. Franklin currently leads the NCAA in assists per game with 1.50 and was recently named to the Soccer Buzz Elite Team of the Week. Senior All-American goalkeeper Ashley Phillips has allowed just one goal in 332 minutes of play and has recorded 15 saves on the young season.

Scouting Furman Clemson is 10-0-1 in the series against Furman, which dates back to the 1994 season. The Lady Tigers have won three straight matches against the Paladins in 2004, 2005 and 2006 following a 0-0 tie between the two teams in 2003. Head Coach Todd Bramble has a 5-0-1 record against Furman.

Furman is 3-1 so far this season, most recently falling to East Carolina by a score of 3-0. The Paladins opened the season with wins over Louisiana Tech (2-0) and Southern Miss (3-0) at the LSU Classic and USC-Upstate (4-1). Anna Betton leads Furman with four goals and one assist for the season and goalkeeper Briana da Mota has 10 saves in 360 minutes of play.

Scouting UNC-Charlotte The Lady Tigers are 5-0 all-time against UNC-Charlotte, but have faced the 49ers only once since Bramble took over the helm of the program in 2001, winning that match by a score of 3-0 last season.

UNC-Charlotte is 2-2 so far in 2007, recording wins over The Citadel (6-0) and East Carolina (2-0) and falling to Georgia (2-0) and Arizona State (1-0). The 49ers are led in scoring by Hailey Beam, who has two goals and one assist for the season. Goalkeeper Lauren Brown has allowed three goals and has 12 saves in 360 minutes of play for UNC-Charlotte.

Clemson won the 2006 Carolina’s Cup, which was played in Greenville, SC and hosted by Furman. The Lady Tigers defeated the Paladins (4-0) and UNC-Charlotte (3-0) to take the tournament title.

Live statistics for the match will be available on www.clemsontigers.com. The statistics can be accessed by selecting the corresponding Gametracker link in the schedule window on www.clemsontigers.com.