FLORENCE, SC - Junior forward
Jose Coutinho scored in the initial minute of the match and Francis Marion University went on to claim a dominating 5-0 Conference Carolinas win over Shorter University, Saturday morning (Sept. 12) in men's soccer action.
Francis Marion improves to 4-1-1 overall and remains unbeaten in conference play at 2-0-0. The Patriots will host Lander University in a key non-conference regional match on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Shorter drops to 2-2-0 and 1-2-0.
The Patriots registered 27 shots, including 13 on target, while holding the Hawks without a shot over the 90-minute contest.
FMU freshman
Patrick Maher saw his first action in goal for Francis Marion and gets credit for the clean sheet, despite not having to make a save. Shorter starting keeper Zachary Lunceford registered seven saves in 75 minutes, while reserve keeper Brallam Cux-Cuin made one stop.
Coutinho took a pass from senior
Santiago Sanchez and sent a bending 18-yard shot into the upper left corner of the Shorter goal only 56 seconds after kickoff. It was Coutinho's third goal of the year.
The margin doubled to 2-0 at the 24:34 mark when senior forward Victor Baron da Silva scored off an assist from sophomore defender
Corentin Solitaire. Less than five minutes later (at 29:09), sophomore
Sebastian Gough sent a cross from the right side through a good portion of the penalty area to where senior
Esteban Quintero pounded home an eight-yard shot for a 3-0 advantage.
Senior forward
Lucas Vila registered his team-leading fourth score of the 2026 season at the 31:56 mark. The Shorter goalkeeper and a Hawk defender ran together and the loose ball deflected to Vila for a 10-yard shot into an open goal.
The final FMU score came at 61:29 when senior
Jorge Torres-Cortes sent a cross into the 6-yard box. That ball was chested down toward the goal by senior
Mohamed Macalou where graduate midfielder
Filippo Noseda bodied the ball into the goal from four yards out. Â
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Francis Marion held a commanding 10-1 edge in corner kicks.
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