Nov. 14, 2010
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By Miquel Jacobs
Media Relations Assistant
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – No. 8 Virginia scored two goals in the run of play and a penalty kick with nine minutes remaining to knock No. 20 South Carolina out of the postseason with a 3-0 win in NCAA Second Round action at Klockner Stadium. The Cavaliers (15-4-2) advance to the Round of 16 while the Gamecocks end their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance with a 15-6-4 record.
Virginia got on the board in the 21st minute with a rare assist by the goalkeeper. Chantel Jones sent her goal kick to midfield where it found the back of Meghan Lenczyk’s head and flicked behind the Gamecock backline to give Sinead Farrelly a breakaway opportunity that she converted to make the score 1-0.
The Cavaliers added the second goal at 60:13 with a volley by Lindsey Miller. The senior one-touched the volley from the top of the ’18 after a Gamecock header off a Virginia cross landed right at her foot. The final score was off a penalty kick by Julia Roberts in the 81st minute.
The match against Virginia marks the second consecutive year that the Gamecocks have played in the NCAA Second Round despite losing eight seniors and six starters from last year’s SEC Championship team. The team defeated Rutgers in last year’s round of 32 before competing against Wake Forest in the Sweet 16. South Carolina is now 6-3-2 against ACC opponents since the 2006 season.
“I knew it would be a battle today,” South Carolina head coach Shelley Smith said. “They are a very good program. Steve Swanson does a wonderful job with them. We knew it would take our best game, but unfortunately I don’t think we played as well as we can. I’m really proud of the girls and their effort. They left it on the field. Despite a couple of miscommunication errors that led to some goals, that’s not like us defensively. Virginia gave us everything we could handle today. They deserved to win and move on, and I wish them the best of luck.”
Playing in front of a home crowd of 645 fans, the Cavaliers put constant, heavy pressure on the Gamecocks throughout the first half. Virginia had six shots and a corner kick in the opening 20 minutes before scoring the goal at 20:15. In contrast, Carolina’s first shot came at 21:12 on a header by Danielle Au off a Kira Campbell free kick.
South Carolina used their first shot – which was on frame and saved by Jones – to begin pulling together some momentum on the offensive end. Less than a minute later, Ellen Fahey took a free kick shy of midfield that found its way to the goal for another Virginia save. However, Carolina would only get one more shot in the half, a bullet by Gabrielle Gilbert that went wide, as the team kept putting long touches on their passes that went out of reach of the attackers.
The Gamecocks were given one cautions in the opening 45 minutes. Ellen Fahey’s yellow card gave a scare to the Klockner Stadium crowd after she and a Virginia player collided on the sideline. The Cavalier fell through the fencing above the “dugout” bench area, causing Fahey to immediately show concern for the Virginia player. The Gamecock received the caution as a show of athlete welfare.
Virginia tallied the second goal almost out of nowhere after a series of throw-ins had the Gamecocks driving down the field and into the attacking third. Danielle Au’s shot in the 58th minute went high but seemed to forecast a mounting Gamecock pressure before Miller sent home the volley off the mis-clearance in the Gamecock defensive end.
A Gamecock foul in the penalty area led to a penalty kick for Virginia’s Julia Roberts, who made the score 3-0 at 81:07 with her PK slotted into the lower left corner.
Senior defender Brittiny Rhoades earned her school-record 93rd career start in the match. She also finishes her career atop the Gamecock record book with 94 matches played. Junior All-America candidate Kayla Grimsley finishes the season with 12 goals and 10 assists for 34 points, tying the Gamecock record for single-season points.
