Spartans to Close out 2011 Regular Season this Weekend
10/19/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The USC Upstate women's soccer team will close out the 2011 regular season this weekend as they welcome Mercer and Kennesaw State to County University Soccer Stadium.
The Spartans can play the role of spoiler this weekend as the Bears and Owls are both battling for a potential Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament berth. Mercer enters the weekend in a tie for sixth-place (seven points), while Kennesaw State is on the outside looking in for the six-team championship event with six points.
Sunday's match against Kennesaw State will serve as Upstate's senior day and fans are encouraged to arrive early for the pre-match festivities. The Spartans will honor four outgoing seniors (Maegan Garner, Julia Harris, Krystal Hedderman and Karen Martinez) prior to the start of the season-finale.
Quick Kicks…
• Against Stetson (Oct. 16), rookie Melissa Pereira notched her first collegiate goal, while Michelle Calmeyn scored twice and recorded an assist.
• Krystal Hedderman notched her first goal in a Spartan uniform in the match against Jacksonville (Oct. 7).
• Maegan Garner scored her first collegiate goal on Sept. 25 against VMI. Garner's goal in the 80th-minute proved to be the game-winner as Upstate rallied for the 3-2 victory.
• Rachel Carr scored her first goal in a Spartan uniform in the 12th-minute against VMI (Sept. 25). Carr returned to the pitch against Winthrop (Sept. 9) after suffering an injury during warmups in the exhibition match against SMC (Aug. 16).
• Michelle Calmeyn didn't find the back of the net, but she assisted on two of Upstate's goals against VMI. (Sept. 25) She assisted on Rachel Carr's goal in the 12th-minute and Courtney Mack's game-tying goal in the 74th-minute.
• Michelle Calmeyn recorded a hat trick (32', 64', 66') against Alabama State on Sept. 11. It was the first hat trick in nearly 10 years and just the third in program history (Thea Moen, Sept. 8, 2001, vs. Mars Hill; Thea Moen, Oct. 23, 2001, vs. Clayton State).
Looking Back at Stetson
Melissa Pereira notched her first collegiate goal and Michelle Calmeyn scored twice, but it was not enough as Stetson claimed a 6-3 victory over USC Upstate Sunday afternoon at the Stetson Soccer Complex.
Calmeyn broke a scoreless tie in the 17th-minute when she was successful on her penalty kick attempt.
Stetson tied the game at 1-1 in the 20th-minute when Alyssa Welsh scored on a rebound attempt. Welsh's goal began a streak of five straight goals by the Hatters.
With the match nearing halftime, Kait Jones gave Stetson a two-goal lead at intermission as she scored her first two goals of the season (42', 45').
Jones was at it again early in the second half as registered both the game-winner and a hat trick, putting her shot to the lower right corner of the goal.
Samantha Synder gave the Hatters a four-goal advantage as she scored on a rebound attempt in the 58th-minute.
Upstate was able to the cut the deficit in half thanks to goals by Pereira (75') and Calmeyn (80').
The Spartans were unable to get any closer than two and Stetson tacked on the final goal of the match in the 86th-minute (Katie O'Kennedy).
Stetson led the way in shots (33-10), shots on-goal (19-3) and corner kicks (6-1). Upstate goalie, Sarah Plantz tallied 12 saves and the Spartans recorded one team save.
The Spartans committed nine fouls and were called offsides four times, while the Hatters were whistled for seven fouls and one offsides penalty.
Looking Back at Florida Gulf Coast
Florida Gulf Coast scored early and often to claim a 9-0 victory over the visiting USC Upstate women's soccer team Friday night at the FGCU Soccer Complex.
FGCU registered the first shot of the game at the 2:30 mark as Brittany Burk's shot was saved by Upstate's Sarah Plantz. Michelle Calmeyn's attempt to give the Spartans an early 1-0 advantage sailed wide.
The Eagles scored what proved to be the game-winner in the eighth-minute when Ashley Ciesielczyk dibbled through the Spartan defense and put her shot past Plantz.
Calmeyn's attempt to tie the match at 1-1 sailed wide of the goal in the 24th-minute.
FGCU pushed its lead to 3-0 with a pair of goals in a span of just 2:52. Danielle Faller scored at the 25:57 mark, while Gina Petracco scored her fifth goal of the season at 28:49. The Eagles tacked on two more goals in the first half to take a 5-0 lead to the locker room at intermission.
The Eagles scored four times in the second half to claim the 9-0 win over the visiting Spartans.
