Men’s Soccer To Host Charlotte In Season Opener Tuesday

Aug. 31, 2009

South Carolina vs. Charlotte | 7 p.m. ET

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The University of South Carolina men’s soccer team (0-0) will host Charlotte (0-0) in the season opener for both schools at Stone Stadium on Tuesday. Kick off for the match is set for 7 p.m. South Carolina is led by veteran head coach Mark Berson, while the 49ers are led by second-year head coach Jeremy Gunn.

Series Information
South Carolina leads the all-time series against Charlotte, 11-4-3, including a 5-4-2 record in games played in Columbia. The two teams have not met since the 2005 season, a 2-1 overtime victory for the Gamecocks in Charlotte. Carolina has won four of the last five meetings between the two schools.

Gamecocks In Season Openers
South Carolina owns a 26-4-1 all-time record in season openers, including a string of two consecutive victories in the opening game of the season, both against archrival Clemson.

Preseason Accolades
South Carolina had two players honored on the Preseason All-Conference USA team in junior striker Sam Arthur and junior goalkeeper Jimmy Maurer. Arthur led the league in goals (12) and overall points (27) in 2008, while Maurer ranked among the top three goalkeepers in the league in goals against average (0.80), saves (91) and saves per game (4.79), while leading the league in shutouts (9) and save percentage (.850).

Collegesoccernews.com’s Freshmen To Watch In 2009
Two of South Carolina’s four-member freshman class were listed on CollegeSoccerNews.com’s 100 Freshmen To Keep an Eye On list. Rookie defender Eric Martinez and freshman netminder Alex Long were honored with selection to the list. The duo were also named to the 2009 Parade Magazine High School Boys All-America squad earlier this summer.

Hermann Trophy Watch List
South Carolina goalkeeper Jimmy Maurer was named to the 2009 Hermann Trophy Watch List in early August. The Hermann Trophy is the top individual award presented in intercollegiate soccer.

Stone Stadium Success
Last season, South Carolina earned a record of 5-1-3 in games played at Stone Stadium. Over the course of the past five seasons, the Berson-led Gamecocks have compiled a 31-10-3 (.739) record on their home field.

Up Next For The Gamecocks
Following tonight’s season opener against Charlotte, South Carolina will travel to face archrival Clemson on Friday in the upstate. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

Challenging Schedule Awaits Gamecocks In 2009
The Gamecocks will play a challenging schedule in 2009, with contests against at least three teams ranked in the Preseason NSCAA Top-25 Poll. From the poll, Carolina will host No. 3 Wake Forest, will travel to No. 9 Northwestern, and will host No. 14 Tulsa during Conference USA play.

Gamecocks Shut Out High Point 4-0 In Exhibition
COLUMBIA – The Gamecock men’s soccer team kicked off its 2009 season with a 4-0 victory over High Point University in exhibition action at Stone Stadium on Aug. 25. Four different Gamecocks scored in the match, South Carolina’s lone exhibition of the 2009 campaign. South Carolina out-shot High Point 12-5 in the match, including a 9-0 upperhand on shots on goal. Gamecock goalkeepers Jimmy Maurer and Sean Nguyen combined for the shutout, while Panther netminder Michael Chesler collected four saves, while allowing three goals, and keeper Adam Santiago earned one save, while allowing one Gamecock goal. Junior strikers Sam Arthur and Blake Brettschneider each registered two shots on goal in the contest to lead the Carolina attack. Arthur scored the game-winner in the ninth minute, connecting on a pass from Brettschneider to give Carolina an early 1-0 advantage. Freshman defender Eric Martinez pushed the Gamecock lead to 2-0 just 10 minutes later, connecting on a deflected corner kick just outside the 18-yard box in the High Point defensive third. Sophomore midfielder Stephen Morrissey increased the Gamecock lead to 3-0 in the 34th minute. Junior forward Mike Lindsay beat a High Point defender down the left side, and connected with Morrissey to send Carolina into halftime with a 3-0 lead. After back and forth play the majority of the second half, senior forward Bryan Lowder collected a well-placed pass from freshman midfielder Ryan Goodwin at the Panther six-yard box and sent a shot past the outstretched arms of HPU’s Santiago for the final Carolina goal of the night. Senior defender Mark Wiltse, sophomore midfielder Vance Benson, junior midfielder Josh Stewart, junior forward Mike Lindsay and sophomore midfielder Danny Cates each also registered a shot for Carolina in the game.

South Carolina Head Coach Mark Berson
Gamecock head coach Mark Berson enters his 32nd season at the helm of the South Carolina men’s soccer program and his 33rd overall season as a college head coach. Berson now has a 410-160-53 record at South Carolina. He is third among active NCAA Division I men’s soccer coaches by victories (421) and ranks as the No. 8 coach all-time in D-I history by victories. Before coming to Carolina in 1978, Berson went 11-5-0 in one season at The Citadel, making his overall record 421-165-53, a winning percentage of 70 percent. In 2006, Berson became one of five active (at that time) Division I coaches and the 10th all-time to reach the 400-victory milestone when his Gamecocks defeated UAB, 2-0, in a televised contest at Stone Stadium.