Boxscore

BATON ROUGE, La.?With their top two goalkeepers and four regular starters nursing injuries, the Lady Techsters fought valiantly but came up short to the Furman Lady Paladins on Friday at the LSU Classic, 2-0.

For the second straight outing, Tech?s game was delayed for 65 minutes by lightning and thunder in the area. Then, as if to add insult to injury, the rain picked up about 10 minutes into the game. Add a brisk wind to the mix, and conditions were less than ideal for soccer.

?I think they did very well, all things considered,? head coach Kevin Sherry said. ?Considering how many starters we had out and that we were using our third-string goalkeeper, there were a lot of positives to take away. Both of their goals were giveaways that can easily be corrected. This is a program that is still in a period of great changes, and there is still a long way to go. But the early signs are good.?

Furman got on the board at the 28:54 mark when Tech lost control of the ball just outside their own box. The Lady Paladins? Lucy Martin had a wide-open look at the net, and Tech keeper Nicole Didier got a hand on the ball but couldn?t corral it as the shot trickled in the net to give Furman a 1-0 lead.

Tech had only one decent scoring opportunity in the first half when Denise Wilson broke loose from a pack of Furman defenders in the 10th minute. But her shot sailed wide left, ending the threat.

The Lady Paladins got on the board again in the 56th minute when senior striker Anna Betton, the leading goal-scorer in the Southern Conference a year ago, broke loose from the Tech defense and fired an uncontested shot from about eight yards out. Her drive found the top left corner of the net, giving Furman a 2-0 lead.

Tech junior Nicole Didier, making her first start since the 2005 season, registered five saves in the seven shots she faced. The Techsters managed four shots on goal, three coming in the second half.

Eight freshmen made their first appearances for the Lady Techsters: Katlyn Bachan, Alana Lum York, Kiva Greshman and Jillian Pinder started the game for Tech, and Lindsey Gamill, Whitney Lanie, Brooke Lanie and Erika Rautio came off the bench.

Louisiana Tech will return to action Sunday afternoon as they face the homestanding LSU Lady Tigers at 1:30 p.m. The game will be the first televised contest in Tech soccer history as Cox Sports TV will carry the broadcast.