Gamecocks take home Carolina Cup championship
CLEMSON — Winning at Clemson isn't the insurmountable challenge it used to be for South Carolina.
Looking to earn a fourth straight win over their in-state rival and their second at historic Riggs Field, the Gamecocks did just that, beating the Tigers 2-0 Friday night before capping off their fifth straight Carolina Cup title with a 2-0 win over UNC Wilmington on Sunday.
"It's definitely rewarding anytime you can get a win at Clemson," coach Shelley Smith said. "We know how difficult it is to play here, especially when you're on the Carolina side. Our girls really battled. We had to match their intensity, and I'm glad we had the opportunities to finish and put the game away. It was a well-fought game."
The match was fairly even for the better part of the first half, with Clemson holding a slight advantage in the shot count at 5-2 through the first 40 minutes. It was then, however, that USC took hold of the driver's seat.
Fielding a throw-in from Dani Henry 30 yards from the Clemson goal, Danielle Au launched a shot just over the gloves of CU keeper Lauren Arnold, giving the Gamecocks a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.
"Danielle is a threat, and I know she's been itching to get another goal," Smith said. "It came at a tremendous time. Going into halftime, that changes the game."
The Tigers came out firing early on in the second half, nearly knotting things up on a pair of shots from forward Maddy Elder in the first 20 minutes, but in the 68th minute, USC capitalized once again. On an Ali Whitney corner kick, Gabrielle Gilbert gathered the ball in the Clemson box after several deflections and managed to tap it into the back of the net to increase the lead to 2-0.
"Shelley and I had worked on that [play] at practice [Thursday] and she told me to open up my body, and basically that's what I did," Gilbert said. "I just kind of read where the ball was and it worked out."
With the victory over the Tigers, USC's senior class became the first in program history to go undefeated against its in-state rival, a feat forward Kayla Grimsley said is a result of the group's commitment.
"We came here to change this program around, and we've been doing it little by little," she said. "The work that we've done here at this stadium is proof of that. No team wants to lose on their home field, but when it comes to Clemson, we don't want to lose on theirs either."
Amid the victory, however, freshman keeper Sabrina D'Angelo suffered an ankle injury in the 77th minute after twisting it while tracking a wide shot, forcing her to be held out of Sunday's match against UNC Wilmington.
Redshirt sophomore Darien Vercillo started in her place and proceeded to post the first shutout of her career, saving two shots en route to a 2-0 victory.
Maria Petroni put the Gamecocks on the board in the 13th minute with tap-in goal off a cross from Lolly Holland, and Kortney Rhoades solidified the lead with a goal in the 58th minute with the assist credited to Grimsley.
The assist tied Grimsley for the career record at USC, tying her with Mindy Sanders at 24.
"It's really a humbling and incredible feeling," Grimsley said. "I've always said this is a team sport, and our team has proven that throughout the years since I've been here. That just proved it again today. I did a lot of work to get those assists, but so did everyone else."