The Gamecock men’s soccer team beat Gardner-Webb on Sept. 28 in a difficult at Eugene E. Stone III Stadium.
The final score of the game was 1-0 with the first and only goal of the game coming in the 35th minute of the match by sophomore midfielder Jordan Matthews.
Matthews scored the goal after coming in off of a substitution less than three minutes before.
“Thought we had some good possession, and we created a few good chances, but I think Jordan gave us a little spark that we needed," head coach Tony Annan said after the game
Throughout the game, both teams were seemingly equal in most stats, with Gardner-Webb having the edge with seven shots and eight corner kicks, while the Gamecocks only had five shots and four corners.
Despite Gardner-Webb having the edge in those offensive statistics in the first half, Carolina was in the lead and playing stout defense inside the box. Freshman goalkeeper Tristan Himes is credited with two saves during the game.
“At the end of the day he's doing really well," Annan said about Himes. "He's got a lot to work on, we've got two very good goalkeepers so it's easy for us to flip-flop between them."
As the game went on, Gardner-Webb had fifteen fouls compared to Carolina’s nine. It was very gritty, with no goals being scored in the second half of the game.
“We defended the box very well with some grit, which is what I’ve been asking them for” Coach Annan said about the grit and grind that the defense played with.
Coming off this win against Gardner-Webb, Carolina faces Florida Atlantic on Oct. 3 at Stone Stadium in Columbia, SC.