Upstate Travels to Sunshine State This Weekend
10/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Oct. 22, 2007
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - USC Upstate (3-11-0, 1-7-0) takes to the road this weekend to face two Atlantic Sun Conference foes from the state of Florida. Upstate will first make its way to DeLand, Fla. to take on Stetson (6-8-1, 4-4-0) on Friday, Oct. 26 at the Stetson Soccer Complex for a 7 p.m. game. On Sunday, Oct. 28, the Spartans will be in Fort Myers, Fla. to square off against Florida Gulf Coast (10-5-0, 6-2-0) at 1 p.m. It will be the first time that Upstate has played both Stetson and Florida Gulf Coast.
Upstate Faced Top-Two A-Sun Teams Last Week
USC Upstate faced some of its toughest competition of the season last weekend when it faced Kennesaw St. and Mercer, the top-two teams in the Atlantic Sun Conference. Last Friday night, Upstate kept the game scoreless for the first 75 minutes until Kennesaw St. broke through with goals in the 76th and 79th minutes to defeat the Spartans, 2-0. Junior goalkeeper Samantha Spradley made 13 saves, one short of tying the single-game saves record. Against Mercer last Sunday afternoon, Upstate quickly fell behind 3-0 in the first seven minutes and was down 4-0 when freshman forward Alyssa Roegner scored on a header in the 37th minute to cut the lead to 4-1. The Spartans cut the lead to 4-2 in the 54th minute on a goal by sophomore defender Liz Pontillo, her first career goal. Mercer regrouped a put the game away with a goal in the 67th minute for a 5-2 win. Roegner's goal was her third of the season.
Pontillo Scores First Goal at Upstate
It was a long time coming and it finally happened last Sunday afternoon. Upstate sophomore defender Liz Pontillo was able to find the back of the net in the 54th minute of a 5-2 loss against Mercer, scoring her first career goal as a Spartan. Pontillo has been a stalwart defender for Upstate since last season and has anchored the center of the defense this season along with senior Caroline Verna. She has played in all 32 games dating back to the 2006 season and is the active leader in consecutive games started with 30.
Roegner Making Waves at Forward
USC Upstate freshman Alyssa Roegner has stepped up her play in recent weeks and has made the switch from midfielder to forward. In her first game at forward against Campbell on Oct. 11, Roegner, a native of Shelby Township, Mich., scored the game-winning goal in a 1-0 win for Upstate's first-ever Atlantic Sun Conference win. Last Sunday, Roegner scored the Spartans first goal on a header in a 5-2 loss to Mercer. In four games since being moved to forward, Roegner has scored two goals after notching one goal in first her first 10 games.
Pontillo, Verna Mainstays for Upstate
USC Upstate sophomore defender Liz Pontillo and senior defender Caroline Verna have made an impact since their first season at Upstate and have consistently been in the starting lineup as well. Pontillo and Verna each played in their 32nd consecutive game this past Sunday against Mercer. Both players are also sporting the two longest consecutive games started streaks on the team. Pontillo has started every game except her first two and has run her streak to 30 consecutive games dating back to Sept. 2, 2006. Verna streak started on Sept. 22, 2006 and she has started 24 consecutive games. The record for games played and games started are 77 games set by Dawn Soule (2000-01, 03-04).
Upstate Successful at County University Soccer Stadium
Since County University Soccer Stadium was opened in 2001, USC Upstate has had a history of success at home. Upstate is 34-17-6 all-time at County University Soccer Stadium with a winning percentage of .673. The Spartans were 10-1-0 at home during the first season of play at County University Soccer Stadium in 2001, winning the Peach Belt Conference regular season championship. Since the program began in 2000, Upstate is 36-24-7 at home (.607 winning percentage).
Spreading the Wealth
USC Upstate has gotten contributions from all over the field so far this season. Through 12 games, 11 different Spartans have scored goals and 14 players have at-least one point. In 2006, only nine Upstate players scored goals and recorded points. Upstate has already tied its goals scored from last season as the Spartans tallied 22 goals in 2006 and has surpassed last season's marks of 15 assists and 59 points.
Reyes There From the Start
Not many coaches can say they were there when a women's soccer program was started and when it made its transition to Division I. USC Upstate head coach Kendall Reyes is the only women's soccer head coach in school history, arriving along with the program in 2000. Reyes has compiled a 66-67-13 record in eight seasons including a Peach Belt Conference regular season championship in 2001 and three seasons of 12 wins or more (2001, 2003, 2004). He was also named Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year in 2001. In March 2007, Reyes was appointed to the position of State Technical Coordinator for Coaching Education by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA). He is the first and only person of color to hold the position in the organization. In addition, he was also appointed as an NSCAA National Staff Instructor in the summer of 2007.
