CLEMSON, S.C. The No. 2 Clemson men’s soccer team (7-1, 2-0 ACC) dropped its first result of the 2021 season on Tuesday night at a rainy UNCG Soccer Stadium in a 3-1 loss to UNC Greensboro (5-2-1). Prior to the match, the Tigers had shutout six straight opponents and were outscoring their matchup by a score of 25-1 on the year. The Tigers, who had only conceded one goal on the season before tonight, fell behind in just the second minute of the match, allowing their first goal in just over 623 minutes of play. The Spartans doubled their lead in the 32nd minute to send Clemson into the halftime locker room down 2-0. Luis Felipe Fernandez-Salvador cut the deficit in half in the 60th minute on a header off the cross of Enrique Montana. The Tigers pushed for an equalizer, but when UNCG knocked home a third goal with just 11 minutes to play, the lead became insurmountable. Up next, the Tigers return home to Historic Riggs Field where they will take on the Pitt Panthers in a rematch
Match Central
CLEMSON, S.C. The top-seeded Clemson men’s soccer team (14-3-2) will face Marshall University (10-2-2) for the first time in program history when the two sides take the pitch on Thursday, May 6, for the Third Round of the 2020 NCAA Tournament. The match is set to kick-off at 3 p.m. and will be played on WakeMed Field #2 in Cary, N.C. Fans can watch here or can follow along via live stats.
Marshall will be the first first-time opponent Clemson faces during the 2020-21 season. The Thundering Herd entered this year’s NCAA Tournament as Conference USA champions and handed Fordham its first loss of the season on Sunday, May 2. Marshall’s Milo Yosef scored his second goal of the match in the 97th minute to help his side advance as 2-1 victors over the Rams. Clemson and Marshall share two common opponents, South Carolina and UAB, from their 2020-21 seasons, and combined to go 4-0-0 against the Gamecocks and Blazers.
Strong Second Half Propels Tigers to NCAA Tournament Third Round
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. Behind goals from Mohamed Seye and James Brighton, the No. 1 Clemson men’s soccer program came from behind to down American University, 2-1, on Sunday afternoon. The win advances the Tigers to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen for the fifth time under Head Coach Mike Noonan.
American struck quickly, as David Coly netted the first half’s only goal in the game’s fourth minute. The Tigers, after a slow start that included two shots by American before the match had even reached the fifth minute, picked up the pressure and out-shoot the Eagles 9-1 throughout the remainder of the half.
CLEMSON, S.C. The No. 4 Clemson men’s soccer team (13-3-2) defeated the No. 1 Pittsburgh Panthers (13-3-0) by a final score of 2-0 on Saturday night at Historic Riggs Field to secure the ACC’s automatic bid into the 2020 NCAA Tournament. Clemson earned its eleventh all-time victory against a top-ranked opponent following tonight’s result, with three coming during the 2020-21 season. Clemson is set to make its 33rd all-time NCAA Tournament appearance and its seventh across the last eight seasons.
“Obviously, this means we get the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament and will probably be the No. 1 seed in the tournament, which is valuable,” said Clemson Head Coach Mike Noonan. “But more importantly, we got a win in front of our home fans and closed out the season the right way.”
Extra Time: Callum Johnson
In the 13th minute of Clemson’s match against Syracuse on March 7, Callum Johnson slipped in behind the Orange’s defense and scored what turned out to be the game-winning goal from the top of the 18-yard box. Luis Felipe Fernandez-Salvador created the opportunity by playing a perfectly weighted pass across the field and into Johnson’s stride after springing a counter-attack opportunity in Clemson’s own defensive third. After receiving the pass with a positive touch, Johnson fired his shot around the Orange’s keeper while simultaneously being tackled to the ground. Rather than watching the ball hit the back of the net, Johnson knew he had scored by the crowd’s immediate roar.