Sep 9, 2013
COLUMBIA, S.C. –
South Carolina travels to No. 12/11 Coastal Carolina for a non-conference tilt on Tuesday evening. The Gamecocks and Chanticleers are slated to kickoff at 6 p.m. in Conway, S.C., at Coastal Carolina Soccer Field.
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Opponent: Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2013 vs. No. 12/11 Coastal Carolina
Kickoff: 6 p.m. ET
Location: Conway, S.C.
Stadium: Coastal Carolina Soccer Field
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Carolina Quick Hits
South Carolina is in its 36th season of varsity soccer in 2013.
South Carolina head coach Mark Berson is in his 37th season overall and his 36th season as head coach of the Gamecocks. He is assisted by former players Spencer Lewis and Joey Worthen, both in their second season. Tim O’Toole is the volunteer assistant coach.
The Gamecocks will play 11 regular-season contests at Stone Stadium this season, including the annual Gamecock Classic and four Conference USA matches.
Senior J.P. Rafferty recorded the first multi-goal game of his career on Friday, Sept. 6, in a 5-2 win over High Point. Rafferty’s two second-half goals came within 15 minutes of each other.
Freshman Kurtis Turner scored the first points of his Gamecock career against High Point, assisting on three goals in the non-conference win.
The five South Carolina goals against High Point are the most scored by the Gamecocks since a 5-2 road win at East Carolina on Oct. 5, 2005.
South Carolina came from behind, but ultimately fell to Clemson 2-1 in double overtime on Sept. 2. Junior defender Mahamoudou Kaba scored the first goal of his career on a header off a Ryan Arambula corner kick to level the match in the second half. Clemson tallied the golden goal in the 102nd minute to win.
The Gamecocks improved to 30-5-1 in season openers with a 1-0 shutout victory over East Tennessee State on Aug. 30. Sophomore midfielder Jeffrey Torda netted the unassisted gamewinner in the 26th minute.
South Carolina posted two shutouts in exhibition play this season, a 1-0 win over Mercer and a 2-0 win over Elon.
Three different Gamecocks scored during preseason play, junior forward Asa Kryst, sophomore midfielder Jeffrey Torda and senior midfielder J.P. Rafferty.
The Garnet and Black posted 31 shots in the pair of matches, with a decided 23-6 advantage over Mercer. The Gamecocks preferred quality over quantity against Elon, putting seven of their eight shots on frame.
Nine newcomers (seven freshmen and two transfers) join 15 letterwinners and four starters from the 2012 squad.
Junior Braden Troyer was selected to the Preseason All-Conference USA squad earlier this month. Last season, the Columbia, S.C., native earned second-team all-conference honors, was named to the Capital One Academic All-District 4 Team and earned a spot on the C-USA All-Academic Team.
Last season, the Gamecocks finished 5-11-2 (2-5-1 C-USA), a year removed from earning a share of the 2011 Conference USA Regular Season championship after a 6-1-1 conference campaign.
Scouting Coastal Carolina
No. 12 Coastal Carolina split a pair of games at the Carolina Nike Classic in Chapel Hill, N.C, to start the season, defeating No. 17 Wake Forest 1-0 before falling to No. 4 North Carolina 4-0. The Chanticleers returned home last Friday to face Charlotte and dropped their home opener 2-1. Senior midfielders Pedro Ribeiro and Matt Risher have each tallied a goal for the Chanticleers with freshman midfielder Sergio Camargo, senior midfielder Justin Portillo and junior defender Ridge Robinson recording assists. Coastal sophomore keeper Devin Cook, a transfer from SMU, has played every minute in goal, notching one shutout and five saves on the season. Shaun Docking’s team, who went 10-0-0 in conference play last season, was selected to repeat as the Big South champion in the league’s annual preseason poll. The team also earned individual honors, with Ribeiro recognized as the Big South Preseason Attacking Player of the Year and junior defender Uchenna Uzo named Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. Ribeiro is also included on the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. The Chanticleers returned seven starters and nine letterwinners from last season. The 2012 team made a deep run in the postseason, advancing to the NCAA Round of 16 for the first time since 2003.
Series History vs. Coastal Carolina
In the first meeting between the schools since 2004, the Gamecocks fell to the Chanticleers 3-2 in their home regular-season finale last season. Coastal Carolina leads the series 5-2-1 all-time.
Up Next for the Gamecocks
The Gamecocks’ travel north for a two-game road trip, starting against No. 23/17 St. John’s on Friday, Sept. 13, at 8 p.m and ending with a trip to Piscataway, N.J., to face Rutgers. The Gamecocks and Scarlet Knights are set for a noon match on Sunday, Sept. 15. South Carolina returns to Stone Stadium for the annual Gamecock Classic on Friday, Sept. 20.
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