Oct. 23, 2014
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 21 South Carolina (11-4-1, 4-3-1 SEC) takes its final road trip of the regular season this weekend, traveling to Vanderbilt for a 7 p.m. ET Friday contest before flying west to No. 6 Texas A&M for a match at 5 p.m. ET Sunday. The SEC Network+ will have coverage of both conference battles.
WEEKEND INFORMATION
Date/Opponent: Fri., Oct. 24 at Vanderbilt
Kickoff: 7 p.m. ET
Stadium: VU Soccer/Lacrosse Complex
Date/Opponent: Sun., Oct. 26 at Texas A&M
Kickoff: 5 p.m. ET
Stadium: Ellis Field
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SCOUTING VANDERBILT
The Commodores (7-8-1, 2-5-1 SEC) collected their first SEC wins of the season last weekend, shutting out both Mississippi State (1-0) and Tennessee (2-0). Simone Charley is the reigning SEC co-Offensive Player of the Week after scoring all three of Vanderbilt’s goals in the weekend sweep and has posted four goals in the last three games to up her team-high season total to seven. The 2013 SEC All-Freshman selection has scored five of the team’s six goals in SEC play this year. Charley has a team-high three assists and leads the team with 17 points. Ashley Oswald has also doled out three assists, while Colby Ciarrocca has five goals.
In the net, Christiana Ogusami has played all but 45 minutes of the season. The freshman has posted five clean sheets and allowed 22 goals.
SCOUTING TEXAS A&M
Currently the team to beat in the SEC, No. 6 Texas A&M sits atop the league table with a 7-1-0 conference record (13-2-1 overall). The Aggies score frequently as the most potent SEC offense, netting 43 goals this season, including 23 in eight conference games. Shea Groom and Kelley Monogue are a big part of that, totaling 27 points each to lead the SEC. Groom has posted seven of her team-leading 12 goals in SEC play and has eight total game-winners. Monogue has 10 goals and seven assists. While the Gamecocks allow just seven shots per game, Texas A&M takes 22 per contest.
Renee McDermott has taken on the bulk of work in the net, helping the Aggies to five shutouts while allowing 16 goals. In conference play, they have allowed just seven tallies.
The Aggies face Arkansas on the road Friday before taking on the Gamecocks Sunday.
LAST MEETINGS
In October of last season, the Gamecocks’ offense exploded to defeat Vanderbilt 4-1 in Columbia. The scoring started early, with the fifth-fastest goal in program history just 1:32 into the match courtesy of Taylor Leach. Raina Johnson scored a pair of goals and Gabby Gilbert added another. Chelsea Drennan assisted on three of the four goals as South Carolina put together its best offensive output of the season.
The Gamecocks and Texas A&M did not meet in the regular season last year, but faced off in the SEC Tournament semifinals where the Aggies prevailed 2-1. Liz Keester scored a pair of early goals for A&M that proved to be the difference. Raina Johnson cut the lead in half for the Gamecocks in the 25th minute, but the comeback bid in Orange Beach fell short.
STATE OF DEFENSE
For the second-straight season, the Gamecocks moved through non-conference play allowing just one goal (vs. Clemson, Sept. 5). South Carolina allowed a goal in each of its first four SEC matches, before posting its first league shutout against LSU (1-0) on Oct. 5. The Gamecocks boast a 0.485 goals against average (9th nationally) and is one of just 14 schools in the country to allow eight goals or less this season. The Gamecocks have allowed more than one goal in just one match this season (3-2 W vs. No. 5 Florida) and have earned nine shutouts in their 16 matches this season. No other SEC team has allowed less than 12 goals.
RPI REPORT
In Monday’s NCAA’s Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) report, the Gamecocks cracked the top 10 again, checking in at the 10th spot after their 3-2 victory over the RPI’s then-No. 3 Florida. The Gamecocks were 13th for two weeks in a row after posting a program-high No. 5 in the season’s initial report. The RPI is one of the tools used by the selection committee to determine the 64-team field for the NCAA Tournament, ranking teams based on wins and losses as well as strength of schedule. This week’s opponents balance each other out with Vanderbilt at No. 77 and Texas A&M at No. 5.
OFFENSIVE OUTBURST
After scoring just four goals in their first six conference matches, the Gamecocks exploded for five last weekend in a 3-2 win over No. 5 Florida and a 2-0 shutout over Ole Miss. South Carolina had scored three goals just once this season (a 3-0 win at USF) before the SEC Network tilt vs. the Gators.
MCCASKILL MAKES HISTORY
After her two-goal performance in the 3-2 win over No. 5 Florida on Oct. 13, freshman Savannah McCaskill earned her second SEC Freshman of the Week recognition, becoming the first Gamecock to receive multiple nods in their rookie season. In the thrilling 3-2 win over the Gators, McCaskill doubled her season goal total, netting a pair of tallies, including the 89th minute game-winner, Thursday night. McCaskill won the match on a bouncing header off a corner kick service from Chelsea Drennan after scoring her first goal of the night in the 34th minute. McCaskill has posted three of her four goals in conference play and is now tied for the team lead in both goals (4) and points (11). The freshman was also an honorable mention for the TopDrawerSoccer.com National Team of the Week.
UP NEXT FOR THE GAMECOCKS
South Carolina returns to Columbia for the regular-season finale against Mississippi State on Thurs., Oct. 30. The Gamecocks will honor seniors Sabrina D’Angelo, Taylor Leach, Christa Neary and Andie Romness before the match.
