Saturday's MatchUP  
September 24, 2022 | 4:00 p.m. ET  
USC Upstate (3-2-3, 1-0-0 Big South) vs. Charleston Southern (2-6-1, 0-0-0 Big South)  
County University Soccer Stadium | Spartanburg, S.C.  
Live Stats: (upstatespartans.com) 

Watch: Charleston Southern vs. South Carolina Upstate | Watch ESPN 

How They Stack Up 

USC Upstate emerged victorious from its first Big South match up with a 1-0 victory over High Point. Upstate was one of two teams to notch a win on the opening night of conference play, with Gardner-Webb being the other. Charleston Southern will go into the match up 0-1 after playing Gardner-Webb on Wednesday night and falling 5-2.  

 
 
Series History  
The Spartans and the Bucs have a series dating back to 2008, with the overall record being tied at 5-5. Upstate kicked off the series with a 2-1 home victory at County University Soccer Stadium. During their last match up with the Bucs, the Spartans pulled off a 1-0 victory in overtime in the 2021 season.  Upstate has a slight advantage with a 3-1 record over CSU during conference play. 

Players to Watch 

Freshman Dara Russo has continued to be a powerhouse forward for the Spartans. Russo leads Upstate with 22 shots, 10 shots on goal, four points, and one game winning goal. Fellow freshman, Sydney Thomas has recorded three points in one week after earning her first career assist against VMI and her first career goal against High Point.  

Upstate continues to have leadership from the upper classmen as well with Alaina McKnight, Cora Brendle, and Ashley Finn starting all eight matches. Junior Ellie Arnold notched another point on the season after being credited with the assist for Thomas' goal against High Point. Brendle earned her second shutout of the season against HPU and now sits with 34 saves on the season.  

Russo sits in the Big South rankings for shots (4th), game winning goals (10th), and shots on goal (10th). Natasha Ferreira is also ranked for game winning goals (5th). Brendle joins them in the ranks for goals against average (2nd), shutouts (4th), saves (4th), shutouts per game (4th), and saves per-game (6th).  

Last Match   

Upstate most recently traveled to High Point, N.C., where it notched its first ever program win over the Panthers. An early goal, stellar defense, and exceptional discipline helped the Spartans to hold the Panthers scoreless for the full 90. Russo led the Spartans offense with two shots, but Thomas would be the one to capitalize, scoring her first career goal while Arnold notched her first assist of the season.  

Charleston Southern most recently traveled to Boiling Springs, S.C. to play Gardner-Webb. CSU went down 2-0 within the first 12 minutes of the game but battled back to make the game 2-1 before the 13th minute. The game proved to be a battle as the teams went into half time with the score 3-2 in favor of the GWU Bulldogs; the Bulldogs would emerge victorious as they extended their lead and finished the game 5-2 over Charleston Southern.  

    
 
UP Next for the Spartans  
The Spartans will remain at home to play Presbyterian on Wed., September 28th at 7:00 p.m. before hitting the road to play Radford on Sat., October 1st at 6:00 p.m. 
 
  

JOIN UP  
Make a difference in the lives of USC Upstate student-athletes! Donate to the USC Upstate U Club today!  

GET INVOLVED    

Want to be a ball kid for USC Upstate Soccer? Kids ages 10 and up can help the Spartans all season long by retrieving game balls on the sidelines during home men's and women's soccer matches at County-University Soccer Stadium. Click here for more details.    

  
 
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