Upstate Opens A-Sun Play At ETSU
10/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 2, 2009
Spartanburg, S.C. - USC Upstate returns to the field after taking more than a week off from competition when it travels to Johnson City, Tenn., to take on A-Sun foe East Tennessee State in both team's A-Sun opener. Upstate enters the game on a two-match winning streak and with a 3-4-0 record. ETSU is 1-4-2 overall on the season, having lost its last three games. The Spartans and Buccaneers have played just once in the series with the ETSU taking a 2-1 win in overtime a year ago. ETSU is in just its second year of competition in men's soccer.
ETSU has played two games against common opponents with Upstate, tying Wofford (2-2) and losing to UNC Asheville (1-0). Upstate lost to Wofford (1-0) and defeated UNC Asheville (2-1). The Buccaneers are led offensively by Sean Hoek who has scored two goals on the season and has four points on the year. Three other players have scored goals on the season, while Scott Rosman has played every minute in goal and owns a 1.31 goals against average with 23 saves.
Fans can get live statistical updates during the game at www.etsubucs.com, the official ETSU Athletics Website.
Looking Back At Presbyterian
Maurice Beggs scored a pair of goals, the final with 1:19 to play in the second overtime period, to lift Upstate to a 2-1 victory at Presbyterian last Saturday. In a pouring rain, the Spartans fell behind 1-0 in the second half as PC scored in the 63rd minute. That's when Beggs went to work, scoring off of a corner kick in the 77th minute to send the game into overtime. After a scoreless first overtime period, time was winding down in the match when Beggs scored his second goal with a little over a minute to play to give the Spartans the win. Pat Regna was huge in goal for the Spartans, finishing with a career-high 12 saves to lead Upstate to the victory. He made extraordinary saves on five occasions to prevent Upstate from losing the game.
Upstate Goes Back-To-Back
With Saturday's win over Presbyterian in overtime, Upstate claimed back-to-back wins for the first time this season and the second time in the Division I era for the Spartans. Prior to the current two-game winning streak, Upstate had claimed back-to-back wins over Belmont and Lipscomb in 2007.
Regna Earns A-Sun, Goal.com Weekly Honors
After a tremendous week in the net, highlighted by a standout performance in the pouring rain at Presbyterian last Saturday, Spartan goalkeeper Pat Regna earned A-Sun Defensive Player of the Week honors. It marked the fourth A-Sun weekly honor for a Spartan men's soccer player since Upstate moved to Division I and the conference in 2007. David Stanbra earned player of the week honors last year, while Jason McCabe and Troy Simon earned defensive player of the week and player of the week honors in the same week in 2007 after leading Upstate to back-to-back wins over Belmont and Lipscomb.
Regna finished the week with 19 saves and a 0.91 goals against average to lead the Spartans to the win. Five of his saves at Presbyterian single-handedly saved the game for Upstate, coming as a result of extraordinary efforts.
Regna also received national honors by Goal.com when he was one of 11 players across the country named to the Web site's Team of the Week.
Upstate Versus The A-Sun
As Upstate moves into A-Sun play, it is noteworthy to chronicle the Spartans' performance against A-Sun member institutions. Upstate has played A-Sun member schools 32 times and is 14-16-2 all-time against the league. In the Spartans' two seasons playing in the A-Sun prior to this year, Upstate owns a 4-13-1 record against conference schools.
Upstate Sheds Provisional Status, Now Fully DI Eligible
While Upstate men's soccer is just in its third year of competing on the NCAA Division I level, it is now fully eligible for postseason A-Sun and NCAA tournament play in 2009. Upstate, upon declaring its intention to move to DI membership, tapped the men's soccer and softball teams as fast-track sports into NCAA Division I. After two seasons playing on the DI level, men's soccer and softball are now fully eligible members.
Looking For A DI First
Heading into its third season playing on the Division I level, Upstate has yet to record a shutout as a DI member. The Spartans recorded a 2-2 tie against Florida Gulf Coast in the next to last game of the season to deliver the Spartans' first DI tie, but Upstate is still looking for the allusive shutout.
Spartans Strong At Home
Since moving into County University Soccer Stadium, the Upstate men's soccer program has been tough to beat. Actually, since the inception of the program in 1980, the Spartans have been stout on the Spartanburg campus. Upstate is an impressive 58-19-3 at the friendly confines of County University Soccer Stadium for a winning percentage of .744. Overall, Upstate is 226-52-13 at home for an .799 winning percentage in Spartanburg. Upstate played its first season in the quad behind the Administrative Building prior to moving to historic Rifle Field in 1981. The Spartans (then, the Rifles) tallied a 162-30-10 record for an .802 winning percentage at Rifle Field.
Hooks An Accomplished Field Leader
USC Upstate head coach Greg Hooks has had an accomplished 22-year coaching career. He has a career record of 279-106-24 with coaching stints at Spartanburg Methodist (1985), Lees-McRae (1986-87), University of Charleston (1991-94) and USC Upstate (1995-present). He started the programs at both Lees-McRae and University of Charleston, leading both programs to national rankings. He took over the Upstate program in 1995 and coached the team to an appearance in the NCAA Division II National Championship game and returned the team to the title game in 1998. He has led Upstate to 192 victories, five Peach Belt Conference regular season championships, six Peach Belt Conference Tournament titles, and five NCAA Tournament appearances. Hooks ended his reign in NCAA Division II as the division's second winningest coach all-time.
Spartan Soccer - A Story Of Success
While the USC Upstate Athletics Department has had a storied history of success throughout its existence, the men's soccer program has achieved success on a more consistent level than any other program at the University. Upstate men's soccer finished third in the NAIA National Tournament three straight years from 1983-85 and made 10 NCAA Tournament appearances in 16 years in the NCAA Division II. The Spartans claimed seven regular season Peach Belt Conference championships, nine Peach Belt Conference Tournament titles, and advanced to the championship game of the league tournament 14 times in 16 years.
