SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Facing a must-win situation for a chance to hoist a championship trophy, USC Upstate women's soccer accomplished something Saturday night that no team in the program's Division I era (2007-pres.) had accomplished and no team in program history had done since 2001. Replicating what it had done Wednesday evening to keep its championship aspirations alive, the Spartans scored multiple unanswered goals to overcome an early deficit, defeating Gardner-Webb 2-1 to capture the 2024 Big South Conference Regular Season Championship.
 
For the second straight match, Upstate faced some early adversity with an early tally from its opponent. Stepping in to create a turnover in the Spartans' defensive end, Gardner-Webb's Alva Joensson booted the ball towards the net from well outside the box as the shot listed just out of the reach of the right arm of Upstate's redshirt junior goalkeeper Meghan Groah for the match's opening marker 15 seconds into the half.
 
From the first minute onward, the Spartans took control, permitting just eight additional Runnin' Bulldog shot attempts with all four attempts landing on goal collected by Groah, recording her sixth match of the season with four-plus saves. Offensively, Upstate tilted the shots in its favor, outshooting Gardner-Webb 23 to nine and creating multiple opportunities with five corner kicks—compared to two for the Runnin' Bulldogs.
 
The Spartans' first tally came off the team's first corner of the night as junior midfielder Margret Edda Bjarnadottir delivered a beautiful ball from left to right across the face of the goal. The last player on the wall, junior defender Emily Rangel found the equalizer with a header from the back post.
 
Getting another great opportunity as the clock dwindled in the first half, Upstate found what amounted to the match-winner with less than 30 seconds left to the break. Settling the ball at her feet off a ball delivered into the box from freshman defender Journey Hawkins, junior forward Hannah Blodget reversed field and found freshman forward Riley O'Bryan atop the 18-yard box. Booting the ball with her left foot, O'Bryan's first career marker—an upper-90 goal—proved the largest goal of the Spartans' season.
 
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 2; Gardner-Webb 1
Records: USC Upstate (8-4-4; 5-1-2 Big South); Gardner-Webb (4-11-4; 1-4-3 Big South)
Location: County University Soccer Stadium | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
1' – Stepping in front of an Upstate pass as the Spartans looked to get out of their own zone, Gardner-Webb's Alva Joensson tallied the first marker of the night with a shot from well outside the 18-yard box. Her shot attempt drifted just over the outstretched right arm of the Upstate keeper to deliver the Runnin' Bulldogs the lead 15 seconds into the match.
19' – Demonstrating once again her proficiency in taking set pieces for the Spartans, Margret Edda Bjarnadottir continued her torrid stretch on set pieces, adding an assist to her two goals from Wednesday night. Delivering a long corner from left to right across the face of the goal, she found exactly who she was looking for on the back post, finding Emily Rangel—the last player on the wall—who put the cross home with the header the equalizer.
45' -Taking advantage of a well-delivered ball into the box from Journey Hawkins, Hannah Blodget settled the ball at her feet, finding an outlet on the reversal, leading to the match-winner with less than 30 ticks to halftime. On the other end of Blodget's pass, Riley O'Bryan rang home a shot from the top of the box into the upper left corner—her first career goal—to break the deadlock.
 
Notable

• With its victory Saturday night, USC Upstate captured the 2024 Big South Conference Regular Season Championship, the program's first championship during the Division I era (2007-pres.). The championship is the first for the program since winning the Peach Belt Regular Season Championship in 2001.
• Leading the program to its first-ever D1-era Championship, head coach Sharif Saber broke a tie with former Spartan head coach Tyson John for the most wins at the helm of the Spartan program in the era. Saturday's victory marks the 28^th under Saber's direction.
• Earning the No. 1 overall seed for the 2024 Big South Women's Soccer Championship and trip to the semifinal round, Upstate qualifies for the conference tournament for the third straight season. The streak of consecutive conference tournament appearances marks the longest for the program since qualifying for seven straight Peach Belt tournaments—all seven seasons competing in the conference.

 
Up Next for the Spartans
Capturing the Regular Season Championship and the No. 1 overall seed in the 2024 Big South Women's Soccer Championship, USC Upstate awaits the identity of its next opponent. With one conference match remaining Tuesday afternoon, Upstate looks ahead to its Semifinal appearance at the Matthew's SportsPlex on Nov. 7.
 
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