South Carolina to play undefeated USF Sunday
No. 18 South Carolina will put its undefeated record on the line Thursday when it takes on South Florida in one of the last remaining matches before SEC play begins.
The Gamecocks entered the top-25 of the NSCAA Coaches poll this week for the first time this season after racing out to a 5-0-1 start to the season. The team received even higher praise from Soccer America, landing at No. 9 in the publication’s weekly rankings.
While coach Shelley Smith recognizes that it is important to keep her team grounded amid its early success, she believes her Gamecocks possess the maturity to stay humble.
“I’ve been happy with what they’ve produced and know they’ll continue to keep it in perspective,” Smith said. “We will continue to remind the team of those things, but I do believe they feel that same way and they remind each other as well.”
Smith added that her team understands they had to earn the national respect they have and with SEC play just over a week away, wins will not be coming any easier in the future.
When the Bulls come to Columbia, they will bring with them an unblemished record of their own, starting the season 4-0-2.
“I think they’re a dangerous attacking team,” Smith said. “They’re very good individually, and they have good creativity in their attack.”
South Florida’s early unbeaten mark could be due in part to the strength of its competition. The Gamecocks will be the first ranked team to take on the Bulls this season.
USF presents a unique challenge for South Carolina, carrying players from nine foreign countries on its roster including co-leading scorers Sharla Passariello of Wales and Demi Stokes, an England native.
“Their roster is made up of a lot of international players,” Smith said. “So I think they will have a different look than what you face on a lot of college teams. They just have a different vision of the game and they’re smart players.”
South Carolina has only one country outside the U.S. represented on its roster, as senior Gabrielle Gilbert and juniors Sabrina D’Angelo and Sam McGowan all hail from Canada.
Before the season, Smith said the team would need production from young players in order for the team to be successful. Now, seven of South Carolina’s 10 goals have come from freshmen and sophomores.
“Some of them have come off the bench and played more and more minutes, and there’s others that are still working their way in but giving us good depth,” Smith said. “So I think they all want to play.”
Much has been made of the program’s attempt at a return to prominence this season after a down year in 2012, and Smith agrees the Gamecocks’ newly minted spot in the top 25 proves that strides have been made in the right direction.
“I think the players understand how hard they have worked and what it takes to achieve this kind of success,” Smith said. “And they don’t take anything for granted. Every game is important.”