The South Carolina men’s soccer team earned its eighth win of the 2024 season in a 3-1 victory against James Madison Wednesday night.
“First half, I thought we were very, very good with the ball. We broke pressure very well, broke lanes and played extremely well,” head coach Tony Annan said. "Second half, they pressed us higher, they committed boys forward. We had a harder time getting out, so we were a little bit more direct. But the defending was gritty and very, very resilient."
The Dukes put South Carolina under heavy pressure at the beginning of the match. By the ninth minute, James Madison tallied four shots and one corner kick.
However, the Gamecocks responded in the 19th minute. Junior midfielder Ethan Ballek found the back of the net with freshman midfielder Alejandro Velazquez-Lopez assisting on the play.
Annan said he used Ballek's offense skillset to play him as a forward, despite being brought into the team as a midfielder.
“Very good attacking play. We thought he was a midfielder, but we put him as a nine, and he's turned out to be a very good attacking player that is a big threat for (opposing) teams,” Annan said.
Four and a half minutes into the second half, South Carolina scored on one of its corner kicks. Sophomore midfielder Jonah Biggar crossed the ball to Velazquez-Lopez, who played a soft touch to junior William Nilsson. The defender then scored his second goal of the season.
But the Dukes' offense would not go away quietly. In the 54th minute, sophomore defender Luca Nikolai chipped a shot into the net to cut the Gamecocks' lead to one goal.
James Madison continued trying to find an equalizer for the remainder of the half, but its hopes of scoring a game-tying goal were dashed in the 89th minute. Biggar scored a brace after James Madison pushed its goalkeeper forward to the offensive end of the pitch.
With the win, the Gamecocks moved into fourth place in the Sun Belt Conference and brought their overall record to 8-3-2.
Gamecocks return home
The Gamecocks returned home to Stone Stadium following a two-game road trip that featured matchups against Georgia State and No. 1 West Virginia. South Carolina split the road trip, winning 2-0 against the Panthers and losing 1-0 to the Mountaineers.
Nilsson and senior forward Harrison Myring helped the Gamecocks clinch their seventh win of the year by scoring in the second half against Georgia State.
South Carolina and West Virginia remained level for much of their matchup, but the Mountaineers found a goal in the 88th minute to seal the win.
Annan said he was proud of the way his team responded to its loss to the Mountaineers and that it had an impressive defensive showing.
“It was a big loss, and to see the guys come out and play that way and make it to the end of the game without really letting them create much was an amazing thing,” Annan said.
Strong offense season from freshman
While Mrying and Ballek are the team's first- and second-leading scorers, Velazquez-Lopez is just behind them. He has scored four goals and has dished out four assists in his first collegiate season.
Lopez said he has been able to develop strong chemistry with players like Ballek, whom he assisted on one of South Carolina's goals, throughout the season. The ability to connect with his teammate off the field is something Lopez said he believes helps the team on the field.
“Me and him understand each other very well, which I'm very glad," Velazquez-Lopez said. "We have similar playing styles, and it's just on and off the field, we're very good friends. It helps a lot."
Staying in the moment
With just three more regular season games left on South Carolina's schedule, postseason play is just around the corner.
South Carolina ranks 55th in RPI, or Rating Percentage Index, a stat that helps determine which programs make the NCAA tournament field. The stat is calculated based off of wins, losses and the teams strength of schedule. The Gamecocks continued building their postseason resume with a win over a perennial tournament team in James Madison.
But Annan said he wants to make sure his team approaches its remaining matches with a focus on the process, rather than tournaments and the possibility of winning a championship.
"We never set goals of conferences. We never set goals of trophies. We never set goals of certain amount of games to win. We set goals of being involved in the process all the way to the end," Annan said. "I think that's what we're gonna continue to do is just focus on the process, not focus on the results and I think that'll help us all the way through."
Whats next?
South Carolina will take on Old Dominion on the road in its next match on Sunday. The game will kickoff at 6 p.m. and be broadcast on ESPN+.