Gamecocks prepare for second round of NCAA Tournament
Since 2010, South Carolina’s athletic programs have beaten No. 1-ranked opponents six times.
Its women’s soccer team will have the opportunity to improve that total to seven this Friday, traveling to face top-seeded Stanford in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The matchup marks USC’s first against a No. 1 team since knocking off top-ranked North Carolina in its 2007 season opener. Challenged with achieving that feat once again, coach Shelley Smith said she believes the No. 22 Gamecocks (16-6-0) are certainly capable of stealing a win from the Cardinal (20-0-1).
“We know we’re capable of beating any team on any given day, and that’s what we take into a team like Stanford,” Smith said. “If you go into a game believing that you can win, it’s possible. Going into Stanford is going to be a tall task, but on that day we can be the best team. To see that other teams here at South Carolina have knocked off No. 1 teams in recent history, we hope to be another one to add to that list.”
Carolina’s trip to Palo Alto, Calif., comes after a 1-0 victory over Texas in the tournament’s opening round. Despite facing the challenge of keeping its sights from drifting to a potential matchup with Stanford, Smith said staying focused on the Longhorns wasn’t an issue for her team.
“I don’t think it was too difficult just because the game was very emotional, especially for our seniors to play what was most likely their final game at home,” Smith said. “It meant a lot to them to make sure they took care of business at home, and they obviously did that against Texas.”
Standing out among those seniors was Kayla Grimsley, who left her mark on the victory with an assist on the lone goal of the match. The play capped off her second consecutive season with 10 goals, 10 assists and 30 points, a mark no other Gamecock had reached before 2010.
“I’ve grown as a player in this program and I’ve been surrounded, luckily, by incredible players year after year,” Grimsley said. “Getting 10 goals is a huge accomplishment for any forward, but also to get the 10 assists is a huge team accomplishment. It’s huge for this program for me to do that and I take a lot of pride in that personally. I think going out with a bang for this program is something I wanted to do.”
Grimsley leads a senior class to Stanford that is the most wins in program history, boasting two SEC titles, four NCAA Tournament appearances and four straight victories over Clemson, the first ever to sweep its in-state rival. Now challenged with upsetting a No. 1 team, Grimsley said this latest task is just another reason she chose to play at USC.
“Coming in I said I wanted to play a powerhouse team and somebody that already had a name for themselves,” Grimsley said. “Unfortunately we haven’t really gotten a chance to play anybody huge such as Stanford, so to come in here my senior year and be able to go across the country and hopefully make a huge upset is going to be incredible. It’ll be good for us to grow as a team, but I’m really excited to just be able to take this group of girls over there. I think if anybody’s going to do it, it’s going to be the team that we have.”
The Cardinal has certainly backed up its position atop the rankings this season, entering the weekend averaging three goals per game while allowing just 0.38. Smith said she’s confident in USC’s ability to match up against Stanford, but said it will certainly face little room for error.
“We know we’ve got to play our best,” Smith said. “We’re not going to back off. We’re going to make it hard on them to play their game. They’re very good in possession. We have to be prepared to know we’re not going to have the ball all the time and know we’re going to have to defend and work hard to win the ball back. I don’t think we’ve faced as good a team in possession as Stanford is, so that’s something the team needs to know.
Although beating Stanford on the road will likely be no easy task to achieve, Grimsley said the Gamecocks won’t be intimidated.
“We’re just excited as a group,” Grimsley said. “When we found out our draw, possibly playing [Stanford] in the second round, I don’t think we were scared at all. I think it’s a huge opportunity to prove the talent we have as a team. If you’re not going to beat them in round two, you’re not going to beat them in the final round. You’ve got to beat good teams to win championships.”