GREENVILLE, S.C. (Oct 21, 2023) – Tarik Pannholzer has described ETSU's 2023 campaign as one defined by "unfinished business." 
  
For Pannholzer and the Bucs, business is booming. 
  
The prolific German snagged an assist on Kieran Richards' opener and converted a late penalty of his own, while Cole Hunter delivered an electrifying performance in goal to lift ETSU to a landmark 2-0 win at Furman. The victory is just the second for the Buccaneers at Stone Stadium all-time and the first since 2015. 
 
Pannholzer now has four goals and two assists in five games in October, and ETSU is 5-0-0 while outscoring opponents 14-1 in that span. 
  
It was an uphill climb for the Bucs (8-5-2, 3-0-1), and the win felt like a distant prospect in the first half an hour. The Paladins (7-4-3, 2-1-1) poured immense pressure on Hunter, amassing 10 shots and three shots on goal before ETSU mustered its first in the 33rd minute. At the break, possession and the shot count heavily favored the home side. The Paladins continued the onslaught out of halftime when top goal scorer Christian Kraus missed 21 seconds into the second half, and a bicycle kick by Jake Raine force Hunter into a leaping save in the 49th. 
  
After spending most of the night absorbing pressure, the Bucs struck back in the 64th minute.
 
ETSU sprung out of the back with a ball up the right side by Louie Salkeld, who found Pannholzer in space on the right wing. Pannholzer tore down the right edge of the box and threaded a low cross through Furman goalkeeper Aaron Salinas and two defenders and found Richards for a tap-in at the left post. Richards' goal was his third of 2023 and 21st at ETSU, tying him with Joao Ramalho for fourth-most all-time. 
  
In the 89th minute, Pannholzer put the finishing touch on the result.
 
A misplayed ball by the Ivan Agyaakwah gave Pannholzer an opening to pounce. He collected the ball and streaked to the end line. A desperate Agyaakwah hauled him down to the right of goal for a penalty, which Pannholzer launched into the top right corner to put the match beyond all doubt. The goal was the German senior's 23rd, tying him with Fletcher Ekern for second-most in a career at ETSU. 
  
The Paladins were relentless, outshooting the Bucs 19-12 and 8-4 on goal, but ETSU held strong for its fifth clean sheet in six games and seventh of 2023. Hunter made a season-high seven saves, the most by a Buccaneer since Marc Kouadio stopped seven shots at Louisville on October 18, 2022, and the most in a shutout since Josh Perryman stopped eight shots for a clean sheet in an ETSU win at Mercer on March 16, 2021. Hunter's shutout was the 13th of his career, breaking a tie with Perryman for third-most in ETSU history. 
 
The win coupled with other results ensures ETSU will be either the first or second seed in the 2023 SoCon Men's Soccer Championship, and the Bucs have a chance to win the SoCon regular season title outright for the first time since 2017 when they host Mercer on Saturday, October 28, at 7 p.m. 
 
For more information on ETSU men's soccer, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's soccer tab.