Wednesday's MatchUP  
October 25, 2023 | 3:00 p.m. ET   

USC Upstate (10-2-4, 6-1-0 Big South) vs. Charleston Southern (8-4-4, 3-2-2 Big South)  
CSU Soccer Field | Charleston, S.C.  
 

How They Stack Up  

Record: USC Upstate (1092-4, -1-0 Big South) vs. Charleston Southern (8-4-4, 3-2-1 Big South) 

Series: USC Upstate trails the overall series 5-7-0 

Last Five Matches: Sept. 24, 2022 (UPST 0; CSU 2), Sept. 18, 2021 (UPST 1; CSU 0 [OT]), Apr. 3, 2021 (UPST 1; CSU 0), Oct. 16, 2019 (UPST 0; CSU 3), Sept. 16, 2019 (UPST 1; CSU 0 [2OT]) 

Players to Watch  

Dara Russo continues to rack up points this season and continues to lead Upstate's stat lines with 12 goals, three assists, 27 points, 57 shots, 36 shots on goal, and two game winning goals. Nya Baccelli is just behind her with eight goals, 4 assists, 20 points, 46 shots, 22 shots on goal, and three game winning goals. Paige Armstrong leads the team in assists with seven while Margret Edda Bjarnadottir has five.  

Upstate continues to enlist Catarina Bastos, Hailey Sapinoro, Savannah Noll, and Emily Rangel to handle the Spartans defensive efforts. Adrianna Pepe, Emily Sanders, Lauren Darbo, and Kiley Jicha have seen decent time through all seven conference games so far. Cora Brendle has continued to be Upstate's final line of defense, establishing a .758 save percentage as well as 47 saves and 10 wins. 

Charleston Southern is led on offense by Claire DeAngelis with four goals, three assists, 11 points, 24 shots, 11 shots on goal, and two game winning goals. Seven Bucs have tallied multiple goals this season: Fiedler, Contreras, Hidalgo, Persson, Angelucci, Thomas, and Reese. DeAngelis, Persson, and Reese all have double-digit shots on goal this season. Jenna Moran has been CSU's primary goal keeper this season with 12 game starts, a 1.12 goals-against average, 73 saves, and a .839 save percentage.  

Last Match    

Upstate most recently defeated the Blue Hose in a 4-0 shutout win in the last home match of the season. Senior night brought success for two seniors as Ashley Finn tallied the game winning goal and an assist while Ellie Arnold was credited with an assist on the third goal. Dara Russo scored her 12th goal of the season while Emily Rangel scored her first and Nya Baccelli scored her eighth. With three saves and no goals against, Cora Brendle secured her fifth shutout of the season and now holds a 0.96 goals-against average. 

Charleston Southern most recently beat UNC Asheville in a 1-0 finish at home on Saturday afternoon. Dakota Fiedler scored the game winning goal in the 60th minute of play with the assist coming from Fiama Hidalgo. The match was fairly even regardless of the Bucs trailing in shots (19-15) and shots on goal (7-6). Jenna Moran made her 12th start of the season in the goal, tallying seven saves to achieve her third shutout.  

Final Season Scenarios 

Upstate women's soccer has clinched a top seed in the Big South Women's Soccer Tournament regardless of the outcome of their final game. With the 18 points the Spartans currently have, a win would secure a No. 1 seed and the Regular Season Championship. A tie against the Bucs would still secure a No. 1 seed, but would make the Spartans Co-Champions with the Highlanders of Radford. Should Upstate drop the final game of the season, the Spartans would finish second in the conference and take the No. 2 seed behind just behind Radford, but over High Point who sits with 12 points and one game remaining.  

 
 
UP Next for the Spartans   
Once the Spartans finish their regular season, they will turn their attention to the Big South Women's Soccer Tournament starting November 2nd at the SportsPlex in Matthews, N.C.  

 
 
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