Carolina hosts No. 7 Kentucky Saturday night
Second of three-consecutive matches against top-25 teams for Gamecocks
COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina (2-5-0, 0-2-0 C-USA) welcomes No. 7 Kentucky (7-0-1, 2-0-0 C-USA) to Stone Stadium on Saturday night at 7 p.m. ET. The conference battle marks the second of three consecutive matches against top-25 teams for the Gamecocks.
“Kentucky comes in on Saturday night undefeated,” said head coach Mark Berson. “They’ve only allowed two goals all year, so they’re playing very well right now. This will be a big test for our team, and we look forward to the challenge.”
Three of Carolina’s next four games are against teams ranked in the top-15 of the latest NCAA RPI standings released on Sept. 23 (vs. No. 4 Kentucky, at No. 7 Virginia Tech, vs. No. 11 Charlotte and vs. No. 1 Wake Forest).
The all-time series with the Wildcats is tied 7-7-3, with the team’s splitting the last four matchups dating back to 2014. Since 2005, 14 of Carolina’s 15 matches against UK have either ended in a draw or been decided by one goal or less.
In the Wildcats’ last trip to The Graveyard (11/4/16), senior Andre Streete scored his first career goal, the game-winner in the 86th minute on a set piece header — it gave the Gamecocks a 2-1 Senior Night victory and the No. 2 seed in the C-USA Tournament.
Saturday’s game is Heroes Night Out, as all active and retired military personnel and their families receive FREE admission. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the first 200 students receive free pizza from Marco’s.
Carolina and Kentucky are the only two SEC schools that play men’s soccer, both competing as affiliate members of C-USA.
SCOUTING NO. 7 KENTUCKY
The Wildcats are fresh off a 3-0 win against East Tennessee State at home on Wednesday to remain unbeaten in 2018. UK has been one of the top defensive teams in the nation so far this season, allowing just two goals in eight games. Sophomore keeper Enrique Facusse’s seven shutouts lead the nation. His .926 save percentage and goals against average of .240 both rank No. 4 in the country. Junior striker JJ Williams leads the team with 16 points (7G, 2A) and his four game-winners are third nationally. He also ranks in the top-20 in shots (4.13) and shots on goal per game (2.13). The Wildcats biggest win was a 3-0 victory against No. 6 Louisville at home on Sept. 4. UK and the Gamecocks have one common opponent so far in Lipscomb. The Wildcats beat the Bisons 3-2 in overtime on the road Sept. 18. UK is young and talented and has just four upperclassmen on its roster to go alongside 14 freshmen and seven sophomores.
FOUR GOALS IN FOUR MINUTES
In South Carolina’s 5-0 shutout win against Wofford (Sept. 19), the Gamecocks scored four times in a 4 minute and 15 second stretch midway through the second half to break the game wide open. All five goals were scored by different players and two were unassisted.
It marked the most goals scored in a match by Carolina since a 5-4 win at FIU on Oct. 8, 2014. It’s also the 75th time the Gamecocks have scored five goals or more in the program’s 41 seasons of competition. The 5-0 score marked the widest margin of victory in a shutout since a 5-0 win at home against Gardner-Webb on Oct. 15, 2001.
NO. 3 IN HOME ATTENDANCE
Through games played on Sept. 26, the Gamecocks rank third in the country in attendance average at 3,726 fans per game. Two of Carolina’s first three games this season currently rank in the top-15 for single-game attendance.
The season-opening crowd vs. No. 13 Georgetown (Aug. 24) drew 4,844 fans, the seventh largest crowd in NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer in 2018. The Gamecocks’ annual rivalry game against Clemson (Aug. 31) drew 4,441 fans, the 11th biggest crowd. South Carolina welcomed 12,937 fans combined for its first three matches of the season (4,312 avg.).
OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
The South Carolina men’s soccer team is supporting Ovarian Cancer Awareness all month long in September by wearing teal warmup jerseys for their matches. In addition to the teal warm up jerseys, the Gamecock coaching staff and support staff is wearing teal polo shirts.
The team’s hope is to promote awareness for this cancer and encourage women to get regular checkups. Contact your local ovarian cancer support group for more information at 888-682-7426 or visit the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition’s website at http://www.ovarian.org. Remember, NO ONE FIGHTS ALONE!
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks hit the road to take on No. 21 Virginia Tech (5-2-2, 0-2-1 ACC) on Tuesday in Blacksburg with coverage provided by the ACC Digital Network.
