GREENVILLE, S.C. – On Friday night, the Wofford College women's soccer team opened Southern Conference play by defeating Furman University 3-2 at Stone Stadium. Furman struck first, but Wofford responded with two goals to pull ahead before the half. The Paladins pulled level in the second half, but a second goal from the boot of Rachel Rasins put the Terriers ahead for good in the 76^th minute.
 
The Paladins opened the match on the attack, sending three shots before the Terriers were able to post their first. Wofford's first true chance came after a Paladin foul, setting up a Terrier set piece on the free kick. Addie Marlett and Mia Bookhard fired off shots, but they were saved and blocked, respectively. Furman struck first with 13:59 on the clock when Julia Nichols found the back of the net off the assist from Isabella Gutierrez. Furman fired off a couple more shots to no avail, but the Terriers responded quickly, netting the equalizer at the 17:57 mark. Caileen Almeida scored her first career goal with a one-timer courtesy of an assist by Rachel Rasins. Wofford broke the tie late in the half, pulling ahead as Katie Gilligan's pass found Rachel Rasins at the top of the box, and she placed a shot just past the fingertips of the leaping Furman keeper into the top left corner of the net for her first goal of the season and a 2-1 lead for the Terriers at the 39:02 mark.
 
Wofford opened the second half with the first shot, which was blocked. Furman followed suit with the next four, and the Terriers responded in kind with two more, but neither team was able to convert. However, with 59:30 on the clock, Wofford committed a costly penalty. Isabella Gutierrez converted the ensuing penalty kick, drawing the Paladins even. Wofford had chances in the 68^th and 69^th minutes with three corner kicks, but the Terriers were unable to convert, only getting off one shot that missed high. The squads traded saves before the Terriers pulled ahead for a second time with 76:31 on the clock. Rachel Rasins took a touch at the top of the box off a deflection before slotting it home in the bottom left corner of the net for her second goal and third point of the match, putting Wofford up 3-2. The Paladins posted multiple chances to try to return level, but Maria Mon held steady in goal with a couple of big saves in the 85^th minute. Furman gave one final shot in the last minute, but Maria Mon made one last save to secure the result for the Terriers.
 
Wofford (3-7-0, 1-0-0) had 16 shots on the night to 27 for Furman (4-3-1, 0-1-0). The Paladins held an 8-5 advantage in corner kicks. Maria Mon (2-3-0) totaled 11 saves in goal for the Terriers. Nora Sampson started in net for the Paladins, tallying four saves in the first half, and Addison Corn (4-1-1) played the second half with three saves.
 
The victory was the first for Wofford at Furman since October 29, 2009, and the first win in the series for the Terriers since the 2010 season. The two teams tied 1-1 during the 2021 spring season.
 
Wofford returns home to Snyder Field to host East Tennessee State on Friday, October 1 at 7:00 pm.