By MONTE DUTTON

I don’t really spend that much time on the road anymore. It’s not like the NASCAR years when I’d play Del McCoury headed through mountains to Bristol or Sheryl Crow on the wild freeways of Los Angeles.

Hell, now I’ve got a truck new enough not to have a CD player, and I’m reduced to late-night radio morons telling everyone how not to bet. I also have a truck that I need to get running again old enough to have a cassette player.

That’s the main reason I need to get it running, but I rarely drive it farther than the trash dump.

I’ve got to have a CD player installed. It’s good for my serenity. I’ve seen music go from .45s with two songs over and over to CDs and satellite radio, and now downloading one song off an album and playing it over and over again … with earbuds.

I like the whole experience. Willie Nelson’s Red Headed Stranger. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s (and many others) Will the Circle Be Unbroken. Jackson Browne’s The Pretender. I could go on and on, but this isn’t a music column.

The world gets faster, and I get slower.

Now on two different RPMs that have something to do with Furman.

Virginia Tech converted from the penalty spot in the first half and added two second-half goals to down Furman, 3-0, in men’s soccer Sunday at Stone Stadium.

The Hokies (4-0-1) were awarded a penalty kick on a foul in the box in the 19^th minute, and Ethan Hackenberg finished from the spot to put Virginia Tech in front. Minutes later, Virginia Tech was gifted another penalty on a trip in the box, but Aaron Salinas saved the chance to keep the deficit at one goal.

After the Paladins missed a few chances to get on the board early in the second half, Carter Hensley doubled the Hokie lead at 75:21 off an assist from Andy Sullins. Olafur Floki Stephensen capped the scoring just over two minutes later by scoring at the far post following Alex Perez’s corner kick.

Cooper Wenzel recorded seven saves to earn the victory in goal for Virginia Tech while Salinas posted two saves for the Paladins. Despite the 3-0 scoreline, the Paladins outshot the Hokies 12-10 and managed a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal.

Furman (2-2-1) is back in action on Wednesday evening with a 6:30 p.m. kickoff at Davidson.

Valentina Mosquera and Maddie Massie netted second-half goals to propel Furman to its third straight victory with a 2-0 shutout of USC Upstate on Sunday at Stone Soccer Stadium.

After a scoreless first half in which the Paladins outshot the Spartans 6-1, including a 3-0 advantage in shots on goal, the Furman women broke the deadlock from the penalty spot in the 62^nd minute. Mosquera was tripped in the box and converted from the spot for her first goal of the season at 61:57.

The Paladins doubled their lead less than five minutes later. Ellie Herrmann served a corner kick towards the top of the box that Mosquera played forward. Ashlyn Goila flicked the ball in the direction of the left post and Massie tapped in a shot from close range at 66:39.

“We played a strong second half again today and were able to take advantage of a couple chances,” said Paladin head coach Andrew Burr. “We continue to improve and develop as we get closer to Southern Conference play and that is our goal as a team.”

Furman finished with a 19-3 margin in total shot attempts and 9-2 edge in shots on goal.

Furman returns to action next Sunday when it hosts Tennessee Tech at 2 p.m.

Furman rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit behind goals from Jenny Jacobson and Helen Gutierrez to edge UNC Asheville, 2-1, in non-conference women’s soccer last Thursday evening.

Trailing 1-0 in the 48^th minute, Ellie Herrmann served a corner kick to the center of the six-yard box and Jacobson, a sophomore from Atlanta, Ga., rose above the defense to head in her third goal of the season at 47:58. Less than four minutes later, Herrmann sent a corner kick towards the far post that Katie Bengough headed off the bar. Gutierrez pounced on the rebound and fired a shot into the right side of the net for her first goal of the campaign to give the Paladins a 2-1 lead at the 51:50 mark.

The pair of second half goals erased UNC Asheville’s lead that came on Ava Bjorkman-Tracy’s 38^th minute strike off an assist from Nao Kawasaki.

Men’s cross country opened the season Friday with a first place finish at USC Upstate’s Eye Opener at Milliken Research Center in Spartanburg. The Paladin women finished runner-up.

On the men’s side, the Paladins finished with 20 points. Clemson came in second with 47 points, while ETSU scored 120 points for third place.

Fifth year senior Evan Guzman finished in second, edging out sophomore Luke Taylor to lead Furman on the 8K course, with both Paladins crossing the line in 25:05.3. Freshman Christopher Knight was credited with fourth place, turning in a time of 25:05.4, followed by sophomore Brayden Seymour in fifth with a time of 25:05.4.  Freshman Owen Shifflett placed sixth with a time of 25:05.5 completing the slate of scorers for the Paladins.  

The Paladin women scored 31 points in the 5K race.  Clemson finished first with 26 points, while  ETSU finished  third with 87. UNC Pembroke scored 155 points for fourth.

Junior Kaylie Armitage led Furman, placing fourth with a time of 17:16.3, followed by juniors Carly Wilkes and Jenna Mulhern in fifth and sixth place, respectively, crossing the line in 17:16.5 and 17:21.9. Senior Sierra Bower posted a time of 17:22.1 for seventh, while junior Emma Jones placed 10th at 17:38.25 to complete the Paladin scorers.

The Paladins will be back in action next weekend when the teams host the Furman Invitational on Sept. 14.

Furman’s Harris Barth (-4) held a one-stroke lead at the Gopher Invitational after Sunday’s opening round. at Windsong Farm Golf Club in Independence, Minn., while freshman Max Halflants (-2) finished as runner-up at the Minnesota Golf Classic at Pioneer Creek Golf Course in Maple Plain, Minn.  

Iowa (+3) led the tournament by one stroke over Minnesota (+4) after 36 holes of play. The Paladins were eighth.

Five different Paladins recorded double-doubles last Wednesday evening as Furman came back from two sets down to defeat USC Upstate Spartans 3-2 (18-25, 19-25, 25-16, 25-23, 15-9) in Spartanburg.
Furman evens its record at 2-2 while USC Upstate drops to 0-4 overall.
Chandler Parker, Izzy Castelloe, Mary Beth Headley, Emily Navarro, and Quinn Morrissey each had double-doubles to pace the Paladins.

Bri Brathol and Allison Palmi recorded double-doubles to lead the Spartans.

The Paladins visit Boiling Springs, N.C. for a 6 p.m. first serve on Tuesday at Gardner-Webb.

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