Men's Soccer

USC Upstate Defeats UNC Asheville 2-0 for First-Ever Big South Win

Box Score

Box Score (.pdf)

Asheville, N.C. – The Big South Conference debut for the USC Upstate men's soccer team turned into a memorable one as the Spartans opened league play on Friday evening with a 2-0 victory over the UNC Asheville Bulldogs at Greenwood Field.

USC Upstate picks up its first win of the season and improves to 1-1 overall and 1-0 in the conference while UNC Asheville falls to 1-2 on the year and 0-1 in league play.

STATS OF THE MATCH

  • The Spartans held a 19-5 advantage over the Bulldogs in shots and limited them to no attempts in the first half. USC Upstate led 7-0 to start and 12-5 in the second half.
  • USC Upstate also led 7-3 in corner kicks.
  • Playing in his first game of the season, Cam Philpot led the Spartans offensively with five shots, including three on goal, and scored his first goal of the year.
  • Erik Espinoza also scored his first goal of the season and took two shots in the game.
  • Joel Bunting, Michelangelo Dovidio, Jaedon Williamson and Sebastian Quinteros all had one assist.
  • Izaiah Vignali attempted a team-high two shots for the Bulldogs.
  • Playing in his first game at USC Upstate, Andrea Bonavia recorded the shutout and grabbed one save.
  • UNC Asheville goalie Dakotah Bainter concluded the game with four saves.

USC UPSTATE GOALS

  • Philpot put the Spartans ahead 1-0 in the 7th minute off a corner kick. Williamson took the corner kick and lofted the ball into the 18-yard box. The ball deflected off Bunting and Philpot was there for the header. (USC Upstate 1, UNC Asheville 0)
  • Espinoza's goal in the 65th minute extended USC Upstate's lead to 2-0. Quinteros gained possession of the ball off a corner kick and made an initial shot attempt. Espinoza redirected the ball into the net past Bainter. (USC Upstate 2, UNC Asheville 0)

UP NEXT

  • The Spartans remain in conference play on Tuesday, Sept. 4 when they host Campbell at 7 p.m. in their home opener.

Follow USC Upstate men's soccer on Facebook (UpstateAthletics), Twitter (@UpstateMSoccer), Instagram (@upstatespartans), YouTube (USCUpstateAthletics) and text/e-mail alerts (www.upstatespartans.com/list-signup).

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