USC to face Clemson in Top-25 soccer showdown

The South Carolina and Clemson women’s soccer teams will kick off the Palmetto Series on Friday as the eighth-ranked Gamecocks face No. 23 Clemson at Riggs Field.

USC (2-0) is riding high after reaching the Elite 8 for the first time in program history last season. The Gamecocks lost four starters off of last year’s team and have shuffled the lineup. Coach Shelley Smith said she will learn a lot about her team during Friday’s game at Clemson.

“Every year we end up facing them early on in the nonconference. It’s kind of a good test for both programs as we enter our conference play,” Smith said. “It gives us a good test early in the season and we want that challenge. We want the schedule to be strong. Clemson is a ranked opponent and a team that we can challenge ourselves against early on.”

The Gamecocks opened the season with a 4-1 with over Northeastern before being pushed to overtime by Oklahoma — ultimately earning a 2-1 victory.

While Smith was happy with the win over the Sooners, she said her team missed several scoring chances. She added that USC can’t afford to miss against the Tigers.

“We had several chances against Oklahoma and luckily we put away two that we needed to win the game, but we had several there that we let go that either hit the post or just missed by an inch or two,” she said. “We know we’re not going to get the same kind of opportunities against a strong Clemson defense, and they have a tremendous goalkeeper. We’ve got to take advantage of any opportunities we create in the box.”

One thing Smith isn’t worried about is her team being motivated. She said the Gamecocks look forward to the chance to face Clemson every year. The fact that both teams are ranked makes the matchup that much more exciting.

“It’s always a big game because of the rivalry,” Smith said. “For us it’s exciting that we have two teams that are ranked opponents. I think it makes it that much more of a showcase game. You can always find a lot of intensity in these matches.”

This story was originally published August 27, 2015 at 7:46 PM with the headline "USC to face Clemson in Top-25 soccer showdown."