A LASTING WIN
The Furman men’s cross-country team competes in the Southern Conference Championships in 2020.
It calls us to shoulder the struggles that affect the group and the members, both. At Furman, our student-athletes drew strength from a distinct dynamic this past academic year – the belonging they experience as Furman students prepared them for the hardships and uncertainties of playing through a global pandemic.
Through it all, our student-athletes kept up their academic excellence: 86 Paladins were named to the Academic All-Southern Conference Team, while 234 made the 2020-21 Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll – a program record of 69% of all university student-athletes across 18 sports.
We had more reasons to celebrate, including record-breaking fundraising success: The new indoor golf training space, the Davis Faxon Training Facility, drew close to completion. The facility is intended to help recruit the best student-athletes, and it reminds us that the alumni who helped make the facility a reality are committed to positioning current and future Paladin golfers for victory.
“Despite the challenges that COVID-19 presented, our student-athletes, coaches and staff consistently rose to the occasion to demonstrate their excellence in the classroom and in competition.”
- 4 NCAA Team Tournament Qualifiers
- 7 Southern Conference Player of the Year awards
- 7 Southern Conference Championships
- 4 Southern Conference Coach of the Year awards:
– Robert Gary, Men’s Cross-Country
– Robert Gary, Women’s Cross-Country
– Doug Allison, Men’s Soccer
– Rachel Whitten, Women’s Lacrosse - Women’s soccer player Jasmine Greene ’23 scored the game-winning goal with 17 seconds remaining to beat host Samford, 2-1, and give Furman the SoCon Tournament Championship.
- Women’s tennis recorded wins over Alabama, Wake Forest, South Carolina and Clemson en route to earning the highest ranking (No. 23) in program history. Katarina Kozarov ’20 was ranked as high as 7th nationally, tying the best ranking in program history. She was named SoCon Player of the Year for the third straight year and went undefeated for her career versus SoCon opponents. Kozarov and Julia Adams ’22 achieved the highest doubles ranking (16th) in program history.
- Cameron Ponder ’22, Indoor Track & Field
- Aaron Wier ’21, Indoor Track & Field
- Ryan Miller ’22, Football
- Katarina Kozarov ’20, Tennis
- Gabbi Jennings ’20, Outdoor Track & Field
- Commissioner’s Cup, Men’s Teams
- 2nd in Germann Cup, Women’s Teams
- 1st Place SoCon School in Learfield Standings
- Women’s golfer Sarah-Eve Rhéaume ’22 won SoCon Tournament individual medalist honors to qualify for NCAA Regional play.
- Men’s golfer Keller Harper ’20 became the second player in SoCon history to earn Player of the Year honors three times and was selected as an individual participant to the Tallahassee Regional, joining Brad Faxon ’83 as the only players in program history to compete as an individual at multiple NCAA Regionals. Harper finished in a tie for 14th place at the Tallahassee Regional.
- Men’s soccer was ranked as high as 23rd during the regular season.
- Gabbi Jennings ’20 was honored as the Southern Conference Female Athlete of the Year. She garnered a first-team All-America citation in the 3,000 meter steeplechase during the outdoor track season after finishing 7th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, setting a program record of 9:38.24. She went on to place 22nd in the Olympic trials.
FURMAN
ADVANTAGE