Not Your Typical Spring Break

It hasn’t been a typical offseason for South Carolina women’s soccer. While many college students hit the beach during spring break, the Gamecocks were able to mix business with fun as they traveled to Italy last month for a pair of matches, team bonding, and a wonderful experience in taking in a different culture.

“We’ve wanted to do this for a long time with our program,” head coach Shelley Smith said. “It has taken years of support from people who support our program, and we had some parents get involved to help get this done.

“We wanted to do something special for the team, but also team bonding. We wanted to give them a chance to experience something that is very special but also get some games. It was really an ideal team-bonding experience. A lot of the players hadn’t been out of the country.”

The team was told about the trip shortly after their season ended in the fall semester.

“We all freaked out when we found out,” said senior Christina Tsaousis, a native of Tarpon Springs, Florida. “We were playing a coin game after a lift, and the coaches said the winners get to pick gift cards or this envelope. So, we picked the envelope and opened it, and it said, ‘you’ve won a trip to Italy.’ We all started freaking out! I had never been out of the country, so this was a super fun experience.”

“It took a minute because we didn’t want to jump the gun and get false hope, but then we started going crazy,” said senior Emilie Castagna, a native of Bournemouth, England. “I had visited family in Italy, but I never did any of the tourist things, so it was a new experience for me.”

The team started in Rome before moving on to Florence, Lucca, Lake Como, and Milan, where they toured San Siro Stadium, home of AC Milan and Inter Milan.

“One of my favorite parts of the trip was when we had the day and night in Milan,” said Tsaousis, who is studying psychology. “We had the chance to go off and shop and try a lot of different foods. We also had a private tour on Lake Como, and that was awesome! I’m a huge pizza enthusiast, and the chocolate croissants were really good.”

“That day in Milan was the most fun!” said Castagna, who is a services management major. “We went out to dinner on our own, and the group I was with went to this rooftop restaurant. It was unreal. We saw the sunset. I think the main consensus among the girls was the shopping and the city vibes. Florence was beautiful!”

“They loved shopping!” Smith said. “They got to eat wonderful food everywhere we went. Gelato was a big hit. We also attended an Inter Milan game. We had a pizza-making experience where we went into a place, and some gentlemen who are expert pizza-makers taught us the whole process, and we made our own pizzas. We made them in a stone oven.

“The other piece is that you go there and see how historical everything is compared to our country. You realize these buildings have been here for so many years; way longer than our country has even been established.”

On the business side of things, the Gamecocks had an opportunity to get on the pitch and try to gel as a unit.

“We played two games in Italy and saw different styles,” Smith said. “They were technically very good. They had some tremendous players that did things around the box. They could find a shot on goal with very little space. They have some skills that were better, and we had some things tactically or athletically that were a bit stronger. We tied one game and ended up winning one.”

“Here in America, everything is very physical,” Tsaousis said. “They were much more technical. It was different and something we had to adjust to. It was awesome to experience that.”

“Being on the field and experiencing a different style of play took us a bit out of our comfort zone, but in a good way,” Castagna said. “We didn’t know how aggressive-physical they were going to be. We had some good results.”

The trip was a success from all angles, and with memories made, the Gamecocks will continue to prepare for the 2026 season in the fall.

“By the end of the trip, I felt so much closer to all of the girls and even the coaches,” Castagna said. “It was such a memorable experience, and to have done it with this team, it was very special.”

“We were already a close-knit group, but now I think we’re even closer,” Tsaousis said.

“I knew this already, but I learned that this team really loves being together,” Smith said. “They love being around each other. They worked hard, too. They didn’t get much rest, but they showed up and were excited to play. They enjoyed the whole experience, but they really liked the competition side, which is nice to see.

“They’ve earned this opportunity.”

Check out the full interview with Coach Shelley Smith, coming soon on Gamecocks+

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