Women's Soccer . November 6, 2020

Gamecocks Drop Regular Season Finale to Tennessee

Game #1

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina women’s soccer (6-2-0, 6-2-0 SEC) fell to Tennessee (4-3-1, 4-3-1 SEC) 1-0 on the road on Friday night. The Volunteers scored early in the second half to defeat the Gamecocks in Knoxville for the first time since 2007.

“We had plenty of opportunities tonight, and we put ourselves in position, we just missed by some small margins,” South Carolina head coach Shelley Smith said. “Unfortunately one didn’t go our way tonight, and sometimes that is just the game of soccer sometimes. Our team did a great job to compete and get opportunities in front of the goal and settle the game. Ultimately, it just didn’t go our way.”

Tennessee scored the match’s lone goal in the 50th minute when senior Wrenne French headed the ball past sophomore goalkeeper Heather Hinz. Despite giving up the goal, the Gamecocks have only given up multiple goals two times in the last 43 matches dating back to 2018.

Carolina had opportunities during the match, most notably late in the second half when the Gamecocks hit the crossbar off a corner kick. Anna Patten finished with a team-high three shots while Lauren Chang added a pair of her own. Corinna Zullo came off the bench to provide a spark, generating multiple opportunities that just did not find the back of the net for the Gamecocks.

Another late chance for the Gamecocks came after a foul was committed by Tennessee on Riley Tanner on the side of the box. Jyllissa Harris stepped over a free kick and delivered a great ball across the front of the goal that just didn’t find a Carolina foot to redirect toward the goal.

The loss for Carolina snaps a six-match winning streak dating back to the season opening loss to Georgia, which was also a 1-0 defeat on the road. The Gamecocks await the results of the final matches in the SEC throughout the weekend to see where they will end up, seeing wise, at the 2020 SEC Tournament in Orange Beach, Ala.

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