Wake Forest Athletics
Deacons Visit Columbia to Face South Carolina
10/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 10, 2003
Winston-Salem, NC -
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Deacons Visit Columbia to Face South Carolina...
on a modest two-game winning streak, the seventh-ranked Demon Deacons (6-3) travel to the Palmetto State for a Sunday showdown against South Carolina at 2 p.m.
- After dropping three of four on the road, the Deacons came back to Spry Stadium and got back on track with a pair of victories last week, 2-0 against NC State and 5-1 against High Point. Meanwhile, the Gamecocks, after getting out of the gates with seven straight victories to begin the year, South Carolina (7-4) has lost its last four, all by shutout, including a Wednesday 1-0 loss at home to Elon.
- South Carolina owns the all-time series lead 10-9-5. The Deacons have historically struggled in Columbia and are without a win at Stone Stadium since 1995.
- In last year's meeting at Spry Stadium, the Deacons won in dramatic fashion, a 1-0 victory on an 88th minute goal by Adam Hakes. Assists on the play were awarded to James Riley and Jeremiah White. The Deacons outshot the Gamecocks 22-7 in front of 3,379 fans in Winston-Salem.
 | Saturday's Game At A Glance #7 Wake Forest at South Carolina
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Last Time Out...
Wake Forest hammered High Point 5-1 on Tuesday night at Spry Stadium. After spotting the Panthers a goal in the fifth minute, the Deacons responded with 17 unanswered shots before halftime, including two goals by Scott Sealy.
- In the second half, Wake Forest poured it on with goals by Tomy Szczypiorski, Kelvin Jones and Ryan Alexander.
- Fifth year senior goalkeeper Brad McEachern made two saves for the Deacons in his first start of the season.
A Wake Forest Win Would...
improve the Deacons' record to 7-3 overall, 1-2 in the ACC... be Wake Forest's first win in Columbia since 1995, snapping a three-game winless streak at Stone Stadium... even the all-time series at 10-10-5... break a six-game winless streak in the state of North Carolina since 1999... give 10th-year head coach Jay Vidovich his 112th career victory.
A Wake Forest Loss Would... drop the Deacons to 6-4 overall, 1-2 in the ACC... increase Wake Forest's winless streak in Palmetto State to seven games including a fourth straight game at South Carolina's Stone Stadium without a win... give South Carolina a 12-10-5 lead in the all-time series.
Inside the Roost...
the Gamecocks enter Sunday's game with a 7-4 record, including a 5-1 mark at home. South Carolina won its first seven games of the year with consecutive victories over Boston, Stetson, Richmond, Northwestern, Jacksonville, Alabama A&M and Appalachian State. But the Gamecocks have lost four straight games, all by shutout, to Portland, Washington, Clemson and Elon. USC's leading scorer is freshman forward Ayo Akinsete. The London, England native has six goals and two assists.
We Now Join Regular Programming Already in Progress...
just like last year, the Deacons seem to be a second half team. Wake Forest has outscored its opponents by a narrow 5-4 margin in the first half of play this season. In the last 45 minutes, the Deacons have turned on the jets, outscoring opponents 11-4.
- Last season, the Deacons found the net 35 times in the second half, compared to their opponents' three.
White Playing With a Broken Cheekbone...
in the second half of the Virginia game on Sept. 13, Jeremiah White took an elbow to the face from Cavalier midfielder Kirk Dinnall. The blow broke the zygomatic arch, the left cheekbone in White's face.
- White underwent successful surgery at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center to repair the damage on Wednesday, September 17. Originally expected to be out up to eight weeks, White returned just 14 days after the injury, just 10 days after the surgery, White returned to the field. He entered the Maryland game with 25 minutes remaining.
- In White's absence, the Deacons scored two goals in 290 minutes.
- Since his return, White has one goal and one assist.
Poll Position...
Wake Forest is ranked 7th this week by Soccer America, and ranks 10th through 23rd in other polls. The Demon Deacons have now spent 33 straight weeks in the top 25 and 18 straight weeks in the top 10. They were in the top five for the first three weeks of the season.
- Five of WFU foes are in the top 25 week this week including Maryland, Old Dominion, St. John's, North Carolina and Virginia Tech. Other Wake Forest opponents that have made top 25 appearances this season include South Carolina, Connecticut, Coastal Carolina, VIrginia and Duke. Wake is 4-2 vs. teams currently ranked in the top 25.
Deacons Among Nation's Leaders in Attendance... last year, Wake Forest enjoyed a great home field advantage in front of enormous crowds at Spry Stadium. The Deacons drew crowds of 3,000 or more for five of their 11 games. That allowed Wake Forest to rank third nationally, first in the ACC, with an average of 2,067 fans to lead the ACC and rank third nationally in attendance for the third time in four years. The Wake Forest adidas Classic drew 6,643 fans during the two days.
- Through just five home games, almost 12,000 fans have watched the Deacons play at Spry Stadium this fall including three crowds of larger than 3,200 to watch Wake Forest's games against Connecticut, St. John's and NC State. That doesn't include a crowd of more than 2,000 to watch an exhibition match against Coastal Carolina.
Hesmer, White Selected to Hermann Trophy Watch List...
Wake Forest placed two players on the Missouri Athletic Club's Hermann Trophy Watch List. A total of 15 of the nation's finest college soccer players were mentioned and Deacon seniors William Hesmer and Jeremiah White were on the list. Wake Forest, along with Maryland and UCLA, were one of only three schools to place two players on the Watch List for soccer's equivalent to the Heisman Trophy.
- As a junior, Hesmer was selected as a first team All-American by Soccer America and a second team All-American by the NSCAA. He was a first team All-ACC and All-South selection after posting nine shutouts last year and recorded a 0.65 goals against average, a new Wake Forest record. That mark ranked second nationally last year.
- White, a forward from Lansdowne, Pa., is a two-time All-ACC First Team selection. He was an NSCAA All-American in 2001. Despite battling injury through the first half of last season, White notched a team-high 11 goals. Five of those were of the game-winning variety, including one in the 88th minute against Old Dominion in the NCAA Tournament.
Hesmer Named First Team Preseason All-American...
senior goalkeeper William Hesmer was selected as a first team preseason All-American by Soccer America. As a junior, Hesmer was a first team All-American by Soccer America and a second team All-American by the NSCAA. He was a first team All-ACC and All-South selection after posting the best single season by a goalkeeper in Wake Forest history. Hesmer was a part of nine shutouts last year and recorded a 0.65 goals against average, a new Wake Forest record. That mark ranked second nationally last year.
Up Next...
the Deacons return home to play Long Island (7-2-2) at Spry Stadium on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. The Demon Deacons and Blackbirds have never met.
