Carolina Travels To No. 5 Clemson Friday Night
Aug. 31, 2017
Men’s Soccer at No. 5 Clemson
COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina (2-0-0) travels north this weekend for its first road match of the season versus instate rival No. 5 Clemson (2-0-0). Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET Friday night at Riggs Field. The game will be the first matchup in the 2017-18 Palmetto Series.
It will be the 46th time the tradition rich soccer programs have met on the pitch. Three of the last five matches have been decided in overtime. Luca Mayr, a Conference USA All-Freshman pick last season, leads the Gamecocks with five points (1G, 3A) through two games. His five points and three assist are tied for the C-USA lead.
FROM THE COACH
“We’re ready to play every match to the best of our ability. We need to be able to deal with anything that’s thrown at us — whether it’s weather or whatever the circumstances are. I think are guys will be ready. There’s not very many places in America where the rivalry is bigger than South Carolina and Clemson. That’s a great thing to be a part of as a player.” — head coach Mark Berson
SCOUTING Clemson
The Tigers return seven starters from last season’s team that went 14-4-5 and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals (round of eight). Clemson finished last season No. 1 in the final NCAA RPI rankings and No. 5 in the final NSCAA Coaches Poll. The team’s top two point scorers are back in Diego Campos (16 points) and Austen Burnikel (11 points). Campos had six goals and four assist a year ago, while Burnikel tallied five goals and an assist. Goalkeeper Ximo Miralles is also back for Clemson. He went 12-4-5 last year in the net and posted a 0.72 goals against average. He allowed just 16 goals in 21 games, made 63 saves (.797 save percentage) and tallied 10 shutouts. The Tigers opened the year with two home victories over Cal State Fullerton (2-0) and Radford (2-1) last weekend. Miralles has seven saves through two games. Campos leads the team in points with four (2G). He scored both goals vs. Radford (Aug. 27).
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks are back at home Tuesday, Sept. 5, to take on North Florida. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. It’s Take a Kid to the Game Night at Stone Stadium. Patrons will receive a free youth ticket with the purchase of an adult ticket.
