SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- There's no better way to start the season off than with a shutout victory and the USC Upstate men's soccer team did just that as they claimed a 1-0 win over the North Florida Opsreys.  

It didn't take long for the Spartans to find the back of the net for the first time this season, as freshman Adrian Panaite flashed in front of a hasty keeper's clear forced by Jimmy James. The shot, which was the first of Panaite's career, of the match, and of the season for the Spartans found its way into the net as the home team leapt out to a 1-0 lead in the fifth minute of the young season. 

The first half progressed uneventfully, especially compared to the first five minutes of the match. Both teams would combine for only two total shots for the final 40 minutes of the period, both of which came in the first 16 minutes of the match. The second half saw an entirely different style of play though as the two teams knocked off the rust of the offseason and rattled off a combined 14 shots (8 UPST | 6 UNF) over the course of the final 45. Both keepers stood tall against the barrage of shots and while the second half saw nearly five times as many shots as the first did, Panaite's sole shot of the night would prove to be the deciding factor.  

On a night that saw the Spartans put under pressure by a physical Osprey front, head coach Scott Halkett was pleased with what he saw from his team in the first match of the season. "I'm proud of the way the guys found their feet, they were able to start getting possession higher up the field, they started doing the right things, the things we worked on in practice," said head coach Scott Halkett after picking up a win in the regular season opener for the first time as head coach of the Spartans. "I think as the game wore on and they got further and further, I thought the boys played fantastic for it being the first game of the season. It wasn't perfect but the determination, the grit, the work ethic they had was absolutely phenomenal tonight." 

Game Information 

Score: USC Upstate 1 | North Florida 0 

USC Upstate (1-0-0, 0-0-0 Big South) vs North Florida (0-1-0, 0-0-0 A-Sun) 

Location: County University Soccer Stadium| Spartanburg, S.C.  

How it Happened 

5' - The first shot of the match would strike true as freshman Adrian Panaite would jump in front of an Osprey pass and find the back of the net for what would be the game-winning goal 

8' - North Florida's Angus Taylor takes the first shot of the season for the Ospreys, but Cooper Jennings records the first save of his career and of the season for USC Upstate 

16' - Junior transfer Anthony Cox rips his first shot in green but it sails over the net. Cox would have the final shot of the half 

17' – 45' - Neither team records much of anything for the final two-thirds of the opening half, as the pace of the first 16 minutes dies down 

47' - Freshman Luke Marin records the first shot of his career, but it goes a bit high. Marin would be one of three Spartans to record more than one shot in the match. 

51' - A brilliantly played header by Marin nearly nets the Spartans another goal, but North Florida's Chema Preciado stops the shot with an excellent save of his own 

56' - Shots leader Jeremy Montero rattles off his first shot of the season, but Preciado blocks the attempt 

56' - 77' - Over the course of this 21-minute block, the Spartans outshot the Ospreys 5-1 as Montero (3x), Dzenan Cerimagic and Braiden Hall record shots  

79' - 81' - The final three shots of the match belonged to North Florida with Rio Onwumere placing the final shot of the match on target. The Spartan's Cooper Jennings denies the shot and secures the shutout victory in his first career start 

Notable 

• Freshman Adrian Panaite recorded the first goal of the season for the Spartans and the first of his career against the Ospreys 

• Redshirt sophomore Cooper Jennings began his career with a clean sheet, earning a shutout victory in his first career start 

• Jeremy Montero, Luke Marin, and Dzenan Cerimagic all recorded 2 or more shots on the night, earning a SOG each 

• Two newcomers to the program earned starts as freshman Adrian Panaite and junior Anthony Cox earned spots in the starting 11. 

• Four Spartans (Cooper Jennings, Julian Fernandez, Elijah Jackson, and Fabian Dietrich) played the full 90 minutes while 11 played more than 60 

• USC Upstate had not won their season opening match since a 1-0 victory over Presbyterian in 2016 

• The Spartans had not beaten North Florida since earning a 4-3 victory over the Ospreys in Jacksonville in 2013 
   

UP Next For The Spartans 

The Spartans hit the road for the first of a three-match road slate. They'll take on the NC State Wolfpack in Raleigh, N.C. Monday, August 28 at 7:00 p.m..  

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.         
      
Connect with the Spartans       
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics       
Twitter | @UpstateMSoccer       
Instagram | @Upstatemenssoccer       
Youtube.com/UpstateSpartans       

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