Upstate Hosts Coastal Carolina in Home Finale Wednesday
10/30/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Oct. 30, 2007
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - USC Upstate (3-13-0) closes out its regular season home schedule this Wednesday, Oct. 31 when it takes on Coastal Carolina (11-5-1) at 7 p.m. at County University Soccer Stadium. This will be the third meeting between the Spartans and the Chanticleers. The series is currently tied 1-1. Coastal won the first meeting, 1-0, at Spartanburg on Sept. 27, 2000, but Upstate took the last meeting, 3-1, at Conway on Oct. 28, 2001. That game was the second in as many days for the then-USC Spartanburg team, which won at Francis Marion, 2-0, the day before.
Spartans Finish First Season in A-Sun at ETSU Saturday
USC Upstate (3-13-0, 1-9-0) will wrap up its first season in the Atlantic Sun Conference this Saturday, Nov. 3 by traveling to northeast Tennessee to face East Tennessee State (9-5-3, 5-4-1) at Summers-Taylor Soccer Stadium at 2 p.m. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools.
Verna, Parkhurst to Be Honored on Senior Night
USC Upstate's home finale on Oct. 31 against Coastal Carolina will also be designated as Senior Night and two Spartan seniors, Caroline Verna and Mia Parkhurst, will be honored before the game for their commitment to Upstate soccer. Verna has started every game but one during her two-year career at Upstate. She switched from forward/midfielder to defender this season and has anchored the center of the defense. This season, Verna became just the fourth player in women's soccer history to score a penalty kick goal on Sept. 9 against Alabama State. Parkhurst has played in 11 games in her two-year career including a start this season against Alabama State. In that same game, she picked up her first career goal and assist in a 9-0 Upstate win. Parkhurst has been a two-sports athlete this fall, competing for the USC Upstate women's cross country team as well.
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 six 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 34th consecutive game this past Sunday at Florida Gulf Coast. 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 32 consecutive games dating back to Sept. 2, 2006. Verna streak started on Sept. 22, 2006 and she has started 26 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 16 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 66-69-13 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.
