South Carolina and Clemson Set for 43rd Meeting on Fri.

Sept. 3, 2015

South Carolina at No. 9 Clemson
Riggs Field – Clemson, S.C.
Fri., Sept. 4, 7:30 PM
ESPN3/Watch ESPN | Live Stats | @GamecockMSoccer

15 SC Men’s Soccer Notes 9/3

Coach Berson Mic’d Up
Conference USA Soccer: An Elite History

Recap of Georgia Southern Victory

South Carolina downed Georgia Southern 4-2 in its second match of the season on Monday.
The highlight came on senior Jeffrey Torda’s scissors kick goal in the 62nd minute.
That goal, which proved to be his second game-winner of the year, made the No. 2 spot on ESPN SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays of the day.
Three other Gamecocks scored in the match, including the first goals as Gamecocks for senior Kevin Walker and junior Danny Deakin as well as the first of the season for junior Koty Millard.
Three Gamecocks made assists, including senior Ryan Arambula on Torda’s game-winner with his free kick.

Notes from Mercer Win

South Carolina posted a 2-1 win over 2014 Southern Conference regular-season champion Mercer in the season opener at Stone Stadium.
Senior Jeffrey Torda tallied his third career game-winning goal with a 55th-minute strike, assisted by junior Danny Deakin.
The Gamecocks owned the lead since the 18th minute when freshman Ben Davidson curved his free kick around the wall and into the upper 90 of the goal.
Seven of South Carolina’s starters played all 90 minutes.

Roster Notes

South Carolina brings back 13 letter-winners and 16 members from the squad that made the 2014 Conference USA Tournament Championship Match.
Ten newcomers join the group: three transfers and seven freshmen.
The Gamecocks return 47 percent of their goals and 57 percent of their assists from last year.
Third-team All-Conference USA midfielder Kurtis Turner is the top returning scorer.
Turner has led the Gamecocks in assists in each of his first two years.
Junior goalkeeper Marco Velez is also back after playing 87 percent of the minutes in goal and recording three solo shutouts last season.

The Gamecocks Shine in the Classroom as Well

South Carolina’s 16 returners have a total of 26 SEC Academic Honor Roll certificates and 25 Conference USA Academic Honor Roll notations between them.
Last season, 20 of the roster members picked up spots on each honor roll.
Ryan Arambula (three) and Jeffrey Torda (two) both own multiple C-USA Academic Medals, which go to honorees holding a 3.75 cumulative GPA or higher.
Both seniors also have CoSIDA Academic All-District nods to their credit, Arambula in 2013 and Torda in 2014.
Nine times, SC has garnered the NSCAA Team Academic Award, including one in each of the past six years.
Twice in the past five years, the Gamecocks have captured the top GPA in NCAA Division I according to the NSCAA.

We Schedule Top Competition

Of the 17 regular-season matches scheduled for the Gamecocks, 12 come against top-100 RPI teams in the final 2014 report from the NCAA.
Ten of those ranked in the top 50, five from C-USA (Charlotte, Kentucky UAB, Old Dominion & New Mexico).
Four foes made the NSCAA/Continental Tire Preseason Top 25, with five more among those receiving votes.
Eight of the Gamecocks’ foes made last year’s NCAA Tournament.

Gamecocks Have a Rich History in NCAA Tournament

On 20 occasions, the Gamecocks made an NCAA Tournament, the most in Conference USA.
Eleven times, the Gamecocks have played the NCAA Tournament Round of 16.
South Carolina is 16-19-1 in the tourney, making two College Cups in 1988 and 1993.

Homegrown Gamecocks Highlight 2015 Roster

Eight Gamecock players hail from inside the Palmetto State, highlighting Mark Berson’s commitment to recruiting and developing local talent.
Three of those started in the first two matches: seniors Ryan Arambula and Wesley Eads as well as junior Koty Millard.
For the past decade, South Carolina’s roster has increased its number of natives on the team, with six or more on each squad since 2006, a mark only hit twice in the previous 15 years.

Berson Ranks Sixth on NCAA Division I Coaching Wins List

The only head coach in South Carolina men’s soccer history, Mark Berson ranks as one of four coaches in NCAA Division I history with 450 wins at one institution.
The active Division I wins leader, Berson owns 472 career victories in 38 years, which includes his 11 in 1977 at The Citadel.
He holds 6th on the NCAA Division I wins list and 16th on the all-divisions listing.
Four wins ties Berson for fifth on the Division I list with Tom Martin, who retired after last season at James Madison with 478 career coaching wins in a career that spanned multiple divisions.
Berson coached his 750th collegiate match vs. Kentucky on Oct. 25.
He’s coached 11 players who have captured 13 All-America nods at South Carolina.
He’s also guided at least one player on each of the past four US Men’s National Teams in the World Cup (Clint Mathis 2002, Josh Woolf 2002 and 2006, Brad Guzan 2010 and 2014).

Attendance Outstanding at Stone Stadium

In the 2015 season opener, 4,325 fans packed the stands for the eighth-largest crowd to watch a men’s match at Stone Stadium in history.
The first two exhibitions of 2015 also saw over 4,000 students scan in for each, filling the stands.
The 2014 Gamecocks had the fifth-highest paid attendance average in NCAA Division I at 2,602.
That 2,602 attendance average is the largest for a season in Stone Stadium history.

South Carolina Played for Third Conference USA Tournament Crown

South Carolina made its eighth appearance in the Conference USA Tournament, advancing to the finals before falling 2-1 to host Old Dominion.
The seventh seed, the Gamecocks opened the event by beating second-seeded and 18th-ranked Kentucky 2-1.
In the semifinals, South Carolina downed No. 21 UAB, 1-0.
Entering the event, SC had only once faced a rematch against a team it lost to in the regular season.
In 2010, South Carolina fell to SMU in the regular season 3-1 but came back to win the semifinal rematch 2-1 en route to its second tourney title.
The Gamecocks added to that total with both wins in the 2014 event.
It’s the second time the Gamecocks have downed back-to-back ranked foes in the event, matching the 2010 team (2-1 W in semis over No. 5 SMU on 11/12, 1-0 W in finals over No. 25 Tulsa on 11/14).
SC missed becoming the first No. 7 seed to win the tourney, joining two others who made the finals (FIU 2007, Memphis 1998).
The Gamecocks are now 9-6-1 all-time in the C-USA Tourney, winning it twice (2005 and 2010).

Gamecocks were Comeback Kings in 2014

In six of South Carolina’s 10 wins, the team came from behind to take the victory.
Five victories came from one goal back, with the fifth marking the largest comeback in school history (down 0-3 at Florida Atlantic).
Twice, the team has fought back against a ranked foe despite being down a player to force double overtime (down 0-1 vs. No. 25/18 Clemson, down 0-3 vs. No. 19/22 Kentucky).
The three wins that didn’t involve overtime or falling behind were a 2-0 decision over Mercer, the 1-0 triumph at Old Dominion and the 1-0 victory over No. 21 UAB in the C-USA semis.

Gamecocks vs. Ranked Foes

South Carolina is 34-57-9 (.385) against foes ranked in the NSCAA top 25 (since 1996).
Broken down by site, the Gamecocks are 17-27-4 (.396) at home, 11-19-5 (.386) on the road and 6-11 (.353) in neutral-site outings.
Last season, the Gamecocks went 3-4 against NSCAA-ranked opponents, winning their last two.

Recent Dominance of Archrival Clemson

Since 2007, the Gamecocks are 6-2 against their archrival Clemson, with both of the losses coming in double overtime on the road (2011 & 2013).
The last four matches at Stone Stadium have gone to the Gamecocks, three coming in shutouts.
It’s the best stretch since the Gamecocks went 10-4 from 1985-95 against the Tigers, with three of the wins in that stretch coming in NCAA Tournament play.

The Last Meeting

Clemson	1

South Carolina	2	(2OT)

September 2, 2014
Columbia, S.C.

Millard Finishes SC’s Comeback Win over No. 25/18 Clemson 2-1 in Second OT
South Carolina (2-0-0) overcame a man and goal deficit with two minutes to play to tie the game against No. 25/18 Clemson (1-1-0) before sophomore Koty Millard clinched it with the Gamecocks’ second golden goal of the season in the 103rd minute to hand SC the 2-1 win over its archrival at Stone Stadium on Tuesday night in front of 3,555 fans.

Recap | Box Score |

Scouting Clemson

Eight starters return for the Tigers, who went 12-7-3 in 2014, winning the ACC Tournament.
Five of the six and 11 of the 13 leading scorers return from the team that made the NCAA Tournament round of 16.
Also back in goal is Andrew Tarbell, who posted a 0.85 goals against average last year in 17 games.
Manolo Sanchez departed, who tied for the team lead with 12 points and six assists.
The Tigers’ diverse attack is mostly intact, with nine of the 13 multiple goal scorers back.
Austen Burnikel led the Tigers with five goals, three of them game-winners. Five others who scored three goals are also back.

South Carolina and Clemson against Common Foes