The South Carolina men's soccer team defeated the Queens Royals 3-0 on Tuesday night at Stone Stadium.
South Carolina got off to a quick start in the match, shutting down the Royals' offense.
"We found a way to win," head coach Tony Annan said after the game. "It wasn't pretty. Wasn't our best performance of the year, but we found a way to win and kept a clean sheet."
In the second minute of the match, the Gamecocks took an early 1-0 lead when redshirt junior defender Camden Kowalski scored his second goal of the season. At the sixth minute, senior forward Harrison Myring scored his sixth goal of the season, making the score 2-0 Gamecocks.
The two teams held each other scoreless for the rest of the first half, but the Gamecocks frequently controlled the ball on offense. In the first 45 minutes, the Gamecocks attempted 10 shots to the Royals' seven. Queens also totaled five saves in the half compared to South Carolina's one.
In the second half, neither team gained much of an edge. South Carolina kept the Royals from attempting many shots but also failed to take advantage of its opportunities on the offensive end.
The defensive stalemate between both teams continued until the 74th minute, when junior midfielder Ethan Ballek scored the final goal of the match for the Gamecocks, making the score 3-0 South Carolina.
Gamecocks quieted after hot start
After scoring two goals in the first six minutes of the match, South Carolina's offense slowed down against the Royals. The Gamecocks were held scoreless for 68 minutes before Ballek's goal late in the second half.
But the Gamecocks still dominated the pace of the match. In total, South Carolina outshot Queens 20 to 13. The Gamecocks also attempted nine shots on goal and forced six saves by Queens' sophomore goalkeeper Evan Morris.
Ballek continues his strong play
Ballek's goal late in the match was his sixth score of the season, tying Myring, who also scored against the Royals, for the team lead in goals during the season with six each.
"We've pushed him higher and given him a bit more freedom," Annan said of Ballek. "He's enjoying himself. He's confident, he's pushing and he's getting the rewards for his hard work."
Ballek, a Timnath, Colorado, native, has scored in all five of South Carolina's wins this season. Before coming to Columbia, Ballek played for two seasons at Virginia Tech. In his time with the Hokies, he appeared in 22 matches and scored three goals.
'We need to just continue with the process'
After the win, the Gamecocks are just one win shy of tying last season's win total of six. Despite this, Annan said he isn't content with the his team's performance in the match.
"I'm not sure we need to build off what we did tonight," Annan said. "We need to just continue with the process and keep believing in ourselves."
The Gamecocks shut down Queens' offensive attack, holding the Royals to zero goals with just one shot on goal. Annan said he believes it was one of the few things the Gamecocks did well against the Royals.
"I don't think there was anything tonight that we could say was exceptional except keeping a clean sheet," Annan said. "Trying to do that in the next few games would be great."
What's next?
South Carolina (5-1-2, 0-1 Sun Belt) will continue its season on Saturday when it travels to face Coastal Carolina (2-5, 1-0 Sun Belt). Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., and the match will be streamed on ESPN+.