Gamecocks prepare for FIU after upsetting top team in conference over weekend
It’s a time-tested adage of sports: Teams must play their best at the end of a season. So far, the South Carolina men’s soccer team has done just that, and it will need to continue as the postseason nears.
The Gamecocks (6-5-4, 3-1-2 C-USA) travel to Miami to face the Florida International Panthers (6-8-0, 2-4-0 C-USA) tonight at 6:30 p.m. This critical Conference USA match falls in the middle of a difficult final stretch that will see South Carolina play the top three teams in the conference.
That daunting stretch began Oct. 26 when the Gamecocks upset New Mexico (8-4-2, 4-1-1 C-USA) 1-0 at Stone Stadium. Freshman forward Eli Dent proved to be the difference, as he tallied two of the team’s three total shots on goal for the match and netted the winning goal in the 92nd minute.
“It still hasn’t really sunk in yet,” Dent said. “It was a big game to play in, and it was just a great feeling to be able to contribute.”
With the victory, South Carolina now sits fourth in the C-USA standings. Seven of the 10 teams will qualify for the conference tournament, and the Gamecocks are only six points ahead of eighth-place Kentucky.
Therefore, all three of their remaining matches — tonight’s against FIU and the final two against No. 23 UAB and No. 21 Old Dominion — are equally significant in the playoff picture.
“All of these games right here are vital for us,” coach Mark Berson said. “Right now the focus is on FIU. They’re another very good team.”
The Panthers’ offense certainly justifies that claim. Junior forward Quentin Albrecht and junior midfielder Roberto Alterio have each amassed 16 points on the season, tying for the team lead.
Albrecht has also tallied 27 shots on target this season, more than twice as many as any South Carolina player.
“[Containing Albrecht] is a big assignment,” Berson said. “We need to be very cohesive as a unit, both in our back line and our midfield line.”
The midfield must once again manage without the help of sophomore Ryan Arambula, who remains out with a foot injury. Berson’s goal is to have Arambula, whose most prominent 2013 statistics include four assists and 11 shots on goal, back in action for the Gamecocks’ final games, however many there may be.
In the meantime, South Carolina will rely on its younger players to step up, as has been necessary for most of this season; the squad has been battling an assortment of injuries.
Many freshmen have risen to the occasion; goalkeeper Marco Velez was named C-USA Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, and midfielder Kurtis Turner has made his presence felt early and often in the first year of his career as a Gamecock.
“[Turner] has probably played every minute of every game for us this year,” Berson said.
Collectively, the Gamecocks will look to make more impacts on Conference USA as they push for a playoff berth.
And Dent said that with the postseason in view, his freshman class is vastly more experienced than it was several months ago, when the season began.
“We’ve grown up so much,” Dent said. “Just having that overall maturity and … that mentality to make an impact.”