Men’s Soccer Closes Out Regular Season at No. 6 Marshall

Gameday Information – #WEareCarolina
When: October 31 | 7:15 p.m.
Where: Huntington, W.Va.
Venue: Hoops Family Field (1,006)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Broadcast: ESPN+
Series History: Marshall leads 13-5-1
Last Meeting: Marshall 3, South Carolina 1 | Oct 8, 2022 | Columbia, S.C.

South Carolina Gamecocks 5-7-3, 3-3-2 Sun Belt
Coach: Tony Annan | 3rd Season – 15-24-9
Goal Leader: 6 | Adam Luckhurst
Assist Leader: 3 | Mika Habel
Points Leader: 12 | Adam Luckhurst
Shots Leader: 28 | Ethan Dekel Daks
Saves Leader: 53 | Ben Alexander

#6 Marshall Thundering Herd 13-2, 6-2 Sun Belt
Coach: Chris Grassie | 7th Season
Goal Leader: 8 | Matthew Bell
Assist Leader: 10 | Matthew Bell
Points Leader: 26 | Matthew Bell
Shots Leader: 41 | Matthew Bell
Saves Leader: 33 | Gabriel Perrotta

Taking the Pitch

• This will be the 16th meeting between the Gamecocks and Thundering Herd.
• South Carolina is 2-6-1 all-time in Huntington.
• Carolina’s last victory came on Nov. 2, 2016 in Columbia.
• The two teams have met every season since 2005.
• The lone tie in the series came on Oct. 19, 2013, a 1-1 draw in Huntington.
• The Herd have out-scored the Gamecocks 31-19 in the series.

Quick Notes

• South Carolina leads the nation in both cumulative and average attendance (4,306)
• Carolina has hosted three of the top seven highest attended on-campus NCAA men’s soccer home matches this season (#5 – Old Dominion, #6 – Jacksonville, #7 – UNCW).
  • They also claim nine of the top 21 spots in highest attended home matches (#10 – Georgia State, #12 – USC Upstate, #13 – Queens, #14 – West Virginia, #20 – UCF, #21 – Coastal Carolina), along with their road match at Clemson ranking as #11.
  • Only Clemson, Creighton and North Carolina have two matches in the top-20.
• South Carolina is the only program in the nation to have all of its home matches (10) rank in the top-50 for attendance.
• Jordan Illian scored the game-winner with 33 seconds left Friday vs Coastal Carolina.
  • Illian notched a brace, making him the first freshman to score two goals in a match since Mike Lindsay against Kentucky on Nov. 9, 2007.
  • He also added an assist for a five-point night, becoming the first Carolina player with at least five points since Jeffrey Torda at UAB on Nov. 3, 2013.
• Jack Burgess scored his first goal as a Gamecock against UCF (10/22)
• Jordan Illian scored his first collegiate goal against Georgia Southern (10/18).
• Ethan Dekel Daks’ goal vs Old Dominion with five seconds left was the latest goal in regulation since Tucker Monheimer with one second left vs Jacksonville on 10/23/2019.
• For his efforts, Dekel Daks was named the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week.
• The Gamecocks held Georgia State to one shot on goal. It was the first time since 2014 (also against GSU), that they’ve held a team to 1 SOG or less.
• South Carolina defeated No. 24 Kentucky for the first time since 2016 and the first time in Lexington since 2012.
  • It was their first win over a ranked opponent since 2019.
• Ben Alexander was named the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week.
  • He was the first Gamecock to win a Sun Belt POW award and the first defensive player to earn any POW honor since 2017.
• The Gamecocks tallied four goals in the match against Queens, their first four-goal match since scoring four against Winthrop on Sept. 9, 2022.
• Carolina also earned five assists in the match, the first time they finished with five in a match since Sept. 5, 2006, against Centenary.
• This is the 45th season of South Carolina men’s soccer.
• The Gamecocks have an all-time record of 526-285-85.
• South Carolina finished the regular season last year leading the nation in average attendance with 2,839 fans per game.
• The Gamecocks begin their second season in the Sun Belt Conference.
• Carolina was picked to finish fifth in the conference by the coaches.
• Peter Clement and Adam Luckhurst will serve as team captains for the season.
• The roster features 10 newcomers; five transfers and five true freshmen.

For the latest on men’s soccer, visit GamecocksOnline.com or follow the team’s social media accounts on Twitter @GamecockMSoccer, Facebook /GamecockMSoccer, and Instagram @GamecockMSoccer.