Complete Release in PDF Format

Spartanburg, S.C. – USC Upstate returns to the pitch for the first time in a week when it plays host to VMI Sunday at noon at County University Soccer Stadium. The Spartans will look to end its two-game losing streak suffered at the Coastal Carolina Classic last weekend in Conway. Upstate dropped its games to 16th-ranked Virginia Commonwealth and George Washington.

Upstate enters Sunday's match with a 2-3-0 record on the year. The Spartans have claimed wins over Presbyterian College (9/2) and Southern Wesleyan (9/5) this season. Upstate has dropped contests to Wofford (8/29), VCU (9/9) and George Washington (9/11). VMI enters the game with a 0-6-0 overall record after its 3-1 loss at Mercer Friday night. The Keydets have lost to N.C. State (8/29), Army (9/2), Navy (9/4), Lipscomb (9/9), Belmont (9/11) and Mercer (9/16). VMI leads the all-time series, 1-0. The Keydets took a 2-1 victory over Upstate in 2007, the Spartans' first year playing on the Division I level.

Upstate returns home to County University Soccer Stadium Sunday for the first time since taking a 1-0 win over Southern Wesleyan on Sept. 5. The Spartans are 61-28-7 all-time at County University Soccer Stadium. The win gave Upstate a two-game winning streak, which was snapped at the Coastal Carolina Classic last weekend in Conway. VMI is 0-4-0 on the road this year.

Fans can follow the action online in a variety of ways. Live video for a fee will be available on ASun.TV and can be accessed at www.upstatespartans.com, the official website of Upstate Athletics. Live statistical updates will also be available on upstatespartans.com, as will a complete game recap and match statistics following the contest.

Looking Back at Coastal Carolina Classic
Upstate faced tough competition at the Coastal Carolina Classic last weekend and dropped a pair of games to nationally-ranked Virginia Commonwealth and George Washington. On Friday against No. 16 VCU, Upstate allowed an unlucky goal in the first half to fall behind 1-0 at halftime. On a throw-in deep in Upstate territory, the ball bounced over an Upstate defender and VCU forward Jason Johnson and into the box. Johnson was able to get behind the Spartan defense and chipped a shot over a charging Jason McCabe and into the net for the 1-0 lead. The Rams then scored three goals in the second half for the 4-0 decision. Against George Washington on Sunday, Upstate gave up a goal in the 39th-minute and that was the difference in the match as GWU took the 1-0 win. Upstate had a pair of scoring opportunities late in the game, but the Spartans could not cash in and took the loss. John Kadane and Kareem Richardson were named to the all-tournament team for Upstate.

Scouting VMI
VMI enters Sunday's game at Upstate with an 0-6-0 record. The Keydets have dropped three-straight matches to A-Sun foes, losing 1-0 against Lipscomb (9/9), 2-1 at Belmont (9/11) and 3-1 at Mercer (9/16). The Keydets held a 1-0 lead at Mercer on Friday night, but allowed three goals in the finals 12 minutes to fall to the Bears and remain winless on the season. VMI has scored four goals in six matches this season and have been shutout three times. The Keydets are 0-4-0 in one-goal games this year.

David Rochow leads the VMI offensive attack. He has four points on two goals. Aaron White has three points on a goal and an assist. Taylor Feuerstein has played every minute in goal for the Keydets and owns a 2.00 goals against average with 40 saves on the year.

Looking Back at 2007
In Upstate's first season playing on the Division I level, the Spartans traveled to Lexington, Va., to take on VMI in its fourth match of the season. Forced to play with just 10 men for most of the second half and turning in a gritty performance, the Spartans fell to the Keydets, 2-1. VMI scored in the 15th-minute and held a 1-0 advantage at halftime. An Upstate player received a red card in the 51st-minute and the Spartans played a man down the rest of the match. Despite the disadvantage, Upstate tied the match at 1-1 on Troy Simon's goal from the right side of the box in the 51st-minute. However, playing a man down took its toll and VMI scored just two minutes later to take a 2-1 lead and, eventually, the game.

Kadane, Richardson Named All-Tournament at Coastal Carolina Classic
Junior defender John Kadane and junior midfielder Kareem Richardson were named to the all-tournament team at the Coastal Carolina Classic (Sept. 9-11). Kadane helped lead the defensive effort for the Spartans. Despite the unit giving up five goals in two matches, Kadane and his group actually played tremendous defense, but fell victim to some costly mental mistakes which accounted for the majority of the scores. Richardson was solid in the midfield and helped distribute the ball forward for the Spartans.

Hoop-in It Up
Junior College transfer Dylan Hoop has certainly provided some positive moments early in the season for Upstate. He first made his presence felt when he scored two goals, the first and the last, in the Spartans' 5-1 victory over Spartanburg Methodist in the first scrimmage of the year for Upstate. Since the start of the regular season, he has been stellar and instrumental in Upstate's two wins so far this season.

He was simply solid while having a say in both of Upstate's goal in the 2-0 victory over Presbyterian College (Sept. 2). He assisted on the game-winning goal by John Kadane, then added an insurance goal in the second half to lead the Spartans to the win. Against Southern Wesleyan (Sept. 5), he scored the game's only goal to lift the Spartans to a 1-0 victory over the Warriors. Hoop has accounted for five of Upstate's 11 points on the year.

Foerster Picking Up Where He Left Off
Last year, Timo Foerster topped the Spartans and ranked sixth in the A-Sun with six assists on the year. This season, he has picked up right where he left off. He tops Upstate and ranks fourth in the A-Sun with two assists. With 13 career assists, he is the career leader at Upstate during the Division I era.

Tracking the One-Goal Games
Upstate has had a tough time dealing with one-goal decisions throughout its Division I era which began in 2007. Just last season, the Spartans dropped six games by a single goal. This season, Upstate is 1-2-0 in one-goal decisions. The Spartans dropped a 2-1 game against Wofford (Aug. 29) to open the season and took a 1-0 victory over Southern Wesleyan (Sept. 5). Upstate has also taken a 1-0 loss to George Washington (Sept. 11) in the Coastal Carolina Classic.

Since joining Division I in 2007, Upstate has played 34 matches which were decided by one goal. The Spartans own a 9-25 record in those contests. In 2009 alone, Upstate had 11 games decided by one goal with the Spartans winning four time.

Upstate Strong at Home
Since opening County University Soccer Stadium with a 1-0 victory over Colorado School of Mines and former Upstate head coach and current Athletics Hall of Fame member Frank Kohlenstein in 2001, the Spartans have enjoyed playing in the friendly confines of County University Soccer Stadium. Upstate has played 96 matches in the facility and have won 61 times. The Spartans own a 61-28-7 overall record in the stadium, a record that has included hosting Peach Belt and NCAA Division II National Tournament games. Their winning percentage is .672 in 11 years in the stadium. The Spartans play seven regular season games at County University Soccer Stadium in 2011.