Wofford 2, USC Upstate 1 (OT)
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – After falling behind in the first half, Wofford men’s soccer comes away with an overtime victory against USC Upstate on Saturday night at County Stadium thanks to a Keaton Hinze goal.
One minute into the overtime period, midfielder Nestor Jaramillo passed a long ball from the right side of the field to a streaking Hinze on the left. Hinze received the pass and beamed the ball past Spartan keeper Hassan Haddad and into the far corner of the net for the game-winning goal.
It was Hinze’s first goal of the season and his first as a Terrier. Jaramillo was credited with his second assist of the season. The assist marked the 19th of Jaramillo’s career as he passed former Terrier Charles Cenac for second place on Wofford’s Division I era career assists record list.
The Spartans opened up the first half attacking the Terrier defense. Spartan forward Gordon Wild knocked home the lone Spartan goal in the 26th minute to give USC Upstate a 1-0 lead.
The goal was Wild’s seventh on the season, adding to his already NCAA-leading mark. Schwarzer notched his fourth assist on the goal.
The Terriers were not able to convert on early scoring opportunities, but this trend changed in the second half. Jaramillo launched a free kick into the box in the 63rd minute that defender Kyle Nelson headed home to tie the game up at 1. It was Nelson’s first goal of his collegiate career.
The game from there went back and forth until the overtime period, when Hinze was able to send the Terriers (4-0-1) home with a victory.
Overall, the Terriers outshot the Spartans 12-11 in the match and took nine corner kicks compared to USC Upstate’s three attempts.
Terrier keeper Joe Wichmann earned his third victory of the season, notching three saves in the match. Haddad took the loss for the Spartans while recording five saves in the match.
The victory moved head coach Ralph Polson back to a .500 record in his tenure at Wofford (62-62-12), and continues an eight-game winning streak the Terriers have posted over USC Upstate. The last time the Spartans defeated the Terriers was in 1988, when both teams played at the NCAA Division II level and USC Upstate was then called USC Spartanburg.
Next up for the Terriers is another road trip, this time to Raleigh, N.C., on Sept. 15 to take on the NC State Wolfpack. The match is slated to start at 7 p.m.
Liberty 3, VMI 0
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Hoping to pick up its first road victory of the season, the VMI men’s soccer team fell in a 3-0 battle to host Liberty on Saturday afternoon at Osborne Stadium.
Liberty’s Kevin Mendoza scored in the 11th minute off a double assist and the Flames (2-3) never looked back, outshooting the Keydets 21-6 en route to the victory. Liberty would add two insurance goals in the second half.
The Keydets (0-4) were paced by two shot attempts apiece from Hunter Morgan and David Harpen, with Alex Hartman adding another. One of Harpen’s shots required a save from Flame keeper Jeremy Lee to preserve the shutout.
VMI goalie Alex Guerra played a complete game in the box, earning seven saves in the effort. Liberty also registered a 6-1 corner kick opportunities advantage. The Flames were led by midfielder Geovanny Murillo, who took six shots, while Sachem Wilson logged four and tallied a goal and an assist for the day.
The Keydets return to action Tuesday for their home opener to welcome ACC foe Virginia Tech to Patchin Field. Kickoff is set for a 4 p.m. start.