Carolina to take on Tribe on Thursday, Boilermakers on Sunday
#15 Women’s Soccer at William and Mary/vs Purdue
COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina will travel to Virginia on Thursday to take on William and Mary in its last non-conference matchup of the 2018 season. The Gamecocks will return to Stone Stadium on Sunday to take on Big Ten foe, Purdue, at 1:00 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT – CLEMSON/NC STATE
South Carolina put its young roster to the test during the second week of the season. First with a big rivalry game against Clemson at home on Thursday night. Carolina claimed the victory over its in-state rival, 1-0 with sophomore Lauren Chang claiming the game-winning goal. The shutout was the third straight to start the season for the Gamecocks, and second for Mikayla Krzeczowski to put her career total to 27. Clemson could only muster one shot on goal during the game, with the Gamecock defense smothering the Tiger attack over and over again.
The Gamecocks also were able to break the Stone Stadium women’s soccer attendance record against Clemson as 6,354 fans packed into Stone Stadium to watch the Gamecocks defeat the Tigers and claim the first Palmetto point of the 2018-19 year.
On Sunday, the Gamecocks had an even tougher test on the road against NC State, the 16th ranked team in the country at the time. The Wolfpack took the victory 2-1, extending their unbeaten streak at home to 12 straight and 13-1-1 in its past 15 games. Redshirt-freshman Claire Griffiths would score the lone goal for the Garnet and Black.
SCOUTING WILLIAM & MARY
Thus far in 2018 the Tribe has had a tough start with a 1-3-0 record. The only win of the season for the Tribe came at home against Coastal Carolina. The 1-3-0 start is a little different than its 2017 start, when the team started 4-0-0.
The team has claimed two additional victories in exhibition play this season, including a 3-2 win against Wake Forest, which the Gamecocks will see next week.
Redshirt-junior Sarah Segan is the only member of the Tribe this season to have multiple goals. She scored both of those goals in the 2-0 victory over Coastal Carolina on Sunday. The goals came just seven minutes apart during the match. Segan also leads the team in total shots this season with 10, which is twice as many as the next closest player in 2018.
Although the Tribe has been outshot thus far in 2018, it has made use of its opportunities. The team has put 54.8 percent of its shots on goal this season, while allowing just 38.9 percent of its opponents shots to be on goal. Additionally, three of the four goals this season for William & Mary have come in the second half.
SCOUTING PURDUE
Prior to Sunday’s match, Purdue will take on Georgia in Athens to begin its weekend against the SEC. Purdue currently has a record of 2-0-1 this season with wins over Eastern Michigan and Iowa State, both at home.
Sarah Clark leads the Boilermakers with two goals and two assists for a total of six points. Both of her goals this season have been via penalty kicks. Purdue most notably played to a 1-1 draw on Aug. 24 against then-No. 25 West Virginia with Clark obtaining an assist against the Mountaineers.
Purdue finished 2017 with a 10-7-2 record, and missed out on the NCAA tournament. The Boilermakers are looking to replace some big names on their roster that reached double-digit wins for the first time since 2009. Then-senior Maddy Williams was named the Big Ten Forward of the Year last season while fellow senior Vanessa Korolas was named to the All-Big Ten Third Team.
GRACE-D WITH HER PRESENCE
After being absent for the first four games of the season, junior captain Grace Fisk is finally back in columbia with the Gamecocks. Fisk took part in the U20 Women’s World Cup with her home country of England in France. Fisk was named the captain of England’s squad that was eventually defeated in the semifinals, which was the country’s first appearance that deep into the tournament on the U20 level. The young Lionesses eventually finished in third place after they defeated France on penalty kicks.
A QUICK DETOUR
Freshman Selma Sol Magnusdottir was named as one of the 23 players for the Iceland women’s soccer national team. Iceland will play a pair of games at the start of September against Germany and the Czech Republic as part of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualification.
Magnusdottir left to join the Iceland national team on Aug. 25. Iceland will play against Germany on Sept. 1st and then against the Czech Republic on Sept. 4th. With the dates of those games Magnusdottir is scheduled to miss games against NC State (Aug. 26), William & Mary (Aug. 30) and Purdue (Sept. 2).
This season, Magnusdottir has been a vital part in the Gamecocks’ attack. She started the first three games of the season, scoring one goal and adding an assist.
GAMECOCKS IN THE POLLS
On Tuesday afternoon, the weekly United Soccer Coaches poll was released with the Gamecocks dropping to No. 15 after the 2-1 loss to NC State. Additionally, Carolina sits at No. 10 in TopDrawer’s rankings and No. 14 in the Soccer America poll.
SIBLING RIVALRY
Although the Gamecocks were unable to pick up the victory against then-No. 16 NC State on Sunday, there was a special moment in the game for Claire Griffiths. Griffiths was able to compete against her older sister Paige, who is a midfielder for the Wolfpack. Claire picked up a crucial goal late in the game, while Paige was also on the field.
After the game, the sisters were asked by a local reporter who won the bragging rights with Claire earning the goal but Paige earning the win with her team.
“I definitely would’ve rather got the win today, but scoring a goal against her was pretty special,” Claire said with Paige looking on.
RECORD BOOK WATCH
Junior goalkeeper Mikayla Krzeczowski entered the 2018 season with some career records on her radar. She currently holds the lowest goals against average in South Carolina history with a 0.46 average.
She is third in South Carolina history with 27 shutouts, just four away from Mollie Patton who played from 2006 to 2010. Krzeczowski is also approaching the top five for saves in a career, currently at 117, good enough for seventh all-time. She also has started 47 games in her career, which is the fourth most in program history.
UP NEXT
The fourth week of the regular season will see the Gamecocks at Stone Stadium for the conclusion of the non-conference season. South Carolina takes on Wake Forest on Thu. Sept. 6 at 7:00 p.m. The Garnet and Black will look to avenge their 3-2 loss in 2017 to the Demon Deacons. To wrap up the non-conference season, the Gamecocks will take on Coastal Carolina. The Gamecocks have not played the Chanticleers since 2015.
