Gamecocks Welcome No. 2 Wake Forest Tuesday Night

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina (3-8-0, 0-5-0 C-USA) faces No. 2 Wake Forest (13-1-0, 5-1-0 ACC) on Tuesday night at Stone Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET, with the gates opening one hour prior.

“Wake Forest comes into Columbia after being the No. 1 ranked team in the country for most of the season,” said head coach Mark Berson. “They have quality at every position on the field.  It will be great to be playing at home. Our fans always help make Stone Stadium a tough environment to play in.” 

This marks the third-straight season the teams have met in non-conference action. The Demon Deacons lead the all-time series 17-12-5, with an 8-5-3 record at The Graveyard.

Wake, who was the No. 1 team in the country all season long prior to a 2-0 loss at Syracuse (Oct. 5) in league play, is fresh off a 2-1 win versus Boston College last Friday.

Since 1996, the Gamecocks are 2-7-1 in games against top-two ranked teams.

It’s Gamecock Club Appreciation Night at Stone Stadium as all Gamecock Club and Junior Gamecock Club members receive FREE admission by showing their Gamecock Club membership card or wearing their Junior Gamecock Club t-shirt. Students also get double rewards points for attending the match. 

SCOUTING NO. 2 WAKE FOREST
The Demon Deacons bring loads of fire power offensively into Tuesday night’s contest, leading the nation in scoring offense (2.92 goals per game), points (120), goals (38), assists (44) and points per game (9.23). Eleven different players have scored goals for Wake, including six players with three or more on their resume. Bruno Lapa leads the team in points with 26 (9G, 8A) — Omir Fernandez ranks second with 24 (10G, 4A). They both rank in the top-10 nationally in overall points. Five players have recorded double-digit points for the Deacs so far in the 2018 season. Goalkeeper Andreu Cases Mundet has started all 14 games between the posts, recording four shutouts. He’s made 35 saves (.714 save percentage) and has allowed 14 goals (0.99 GAA).

BUZZER BEATER 
Junior striker Luca Mayr scored the game-winning goal to knock-off No. 19 Virginia Tech, 2-1, in double overtime on the road in Blacksburg on Oct. 2. Sophomore Mitchell Myers intercepted a pass just inside midfield with time dwindling on the clock and found Mayr on the far sideline. The Steyr, Austria, native laced a shot from 30-yards out on target and found the back of the net far post with 19.4 seconds to go.

FOUR GOALS IN FOUR MINUTES
In South Carolina’s 5-0 shutout win against Wofford (Sept. 19), the Gamecocks scored four times in a 4 minute and 15 second stretch midway through the second half to break the game wide open. All five goals were scored by different players and two were unassisted.
 
It marked the most goals scored in a match by Carolina since a 5-4 win at FIU on Oct. 8, 2014. It’s also the 75th time the Gamecocks have scored five goals or more in the program’s 41 seasons of competition. The 5-0 score marked the widest margin of victory in a shutout since a 5-0 win at home against Gardner-Webb on Oct. 15, 2001.

NO. 5 IN HOME ATTENDANCE
Through games played on Oct. 14, the Gamecocks rank fifth in the country in attendance average at 3,033 fans per game. Two of Carolina’s first three games this season currently rank in the top-15 for single-game attendance.
 
The season-opening crowd vs. No. 13 Georgetown (Aug. 24) drew 4,844 fans, the 10th largest crowd in NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer in 2018.  The Gamecocks’ annual rivalry game against Clemson (Aug. 31) drew 4,441 fans, the 14th biggest crowd. South Carolina welcomed 12,937 fans combined for its first three matches of the season (4,312 avg.).

OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
The South Carolina men’s soccer team supported Ovarian Cancer Awareness all month long in September by wearing teal warmup jerseys for their matches. In addition to the teal warm up jerseys, the Gamecock coaching staff and support staff wore teal polo shirts. 
 
The team is promoting awareness for this cancer and encourages women to get regular checkups. Contact your local ovarian cancer support group for more information at 888-682-7426 or visit the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition’s website at http://www.ovarian.org. Remember, NO ONE FIGHTS ALONE! 

​​​​​UP NEXT
The Gamecocks remain at home and face USC Upstate (3-8-0, 3-3-0  Big South) on Saturday night at 7 p.m. ET. It’s Take a Kid to the Game Night as fans will receive a FREE youth ticket with the purchase of an adult ticket. All Read with the Gamecocks participants are also invited to attend the match.