Crooks Heads Furman Past Jacksonville, 1-0; Paladins Claim Sixth Straight Win

September 18, 2011

Jacksonville, Fla. -- Junior Alex Crooks scored on a 76th minute header to lift Furman to its sixth straight victory with a 1-0 triumph at Jacksonville University on Sunday afternoon at the Ashley Sports Complex.

The Paladins improved to 6-1-1 on the season and upped their mark away from the friendly confines of Stone Stadium to 4-0-1. The Dolphins dropped to 1-4-1 on the season.

“We were able to grind out two wins on the road this weekend against two tough teams,” said Paladin head coach Doug Allison. “Alex and Jacob combined on a nice goal and were able to get Alec another shutout today so it was a good weekend for us.”

Crooks, an Alpharetta, Ga., native, got on the end of a Jacob Brown cross at 75:17 to break a scoreless draw with his first goal of the 2011 season. Brown served a cross from his right back position to the far post and Crooks headed a shot back across the face of goal and into the upper corner for the deciding score.

Senior Alec Kann recorded two saves in goal to notch his fourth clean sheet of the campaign. He leads all active Southern Conference goalkeepers with 14 career shutouts and 29 wins.

The Paladins held a 9-5 edge in shots and held the Dolphins without a corner kick while totaling four of their own. Jacksonville was issued four cautions in the match. George Fradenburg picked up the lone yellow card for Furman.

Furman returns home to host Presbyterian College on Friday at Stone Stadium. Kickoff versus the Blue Hose is set for 4 p.m.

Follow www.FurmanPaladins.com and www.Twitter.com/FurmanPaladins for updates on Furman Men’s Soccer throughout the 2011 season.