Clemson, S.C. -
In the 111th year of Historic Riggs Field and the 59th edition of the "Upstate Derby," Clemson pounced on a red-hot Furman Paladin team that entered the game ranked third in the country, winning 5-1.
Furman came into the matchup looking for revenge after a deep run in last year's College Cup that saw them lose to eventual national champion Washington in the semifinals.
It was the Tigers, though, that came in with a vengeful mindset after a disappointing exit in the first round of the College Cup, having lost to Western Michigan 1-0 at home.
The Tigers struck first blood early as freshman striker Johannes Kack found the back of the net off a cross from Breno Correia in the ninth minute. The goal marked the first of Kack's collegiate career. Clemson controlled the ball most of the first half, shown with their ten shot attempts compared to the Paladins' two.
After Clemson coach Mike Noonan challenged a missed foul in the box in the 51st minute, senior Mason Jimenez was awarded a penalty kick and doubled the Tigers' lead shortly thereafter. Clemson continued their reign of terror on the day as sophomore Xander Sevian recorded his first career brace with back-to-back goals in a three minute frame to put the Tigers ahead 4-0. Junior Ransford Gyan joined in with a goal of his own in the 68th minute, a beautiful floater to the top-right corner of the net from the left-side of the pitch.
Goalkeeper Aleska Janjic held a clean sheet into the 82nd minute before Furman finally found the goal, cutting Clemson's lead to 5-1. Janjic finished the match with four saves through a full 90 minutes of work.
Mike Noonan recorded his 416th career win as a head coach and his 192nd win at helm in Clemson.
Clemson faces ETSU on Sunday at 7:00 PM.