Wake Forest Athletics
Wake Forest University
Clemson
No. 15 Wake Forest Defeats Clemson 2-0
10/12/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Oct. 12, 2008
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Jill Hutchinson and Amy Smerdzinski scored goals to lead No. 15 Wake Forest (9-4, 2-3 ACC) to a 2-0 victory over Clemson (5-6-1, 1-3-1 ACC) in a crucial conference game on a breezy Sunday afternoon at Spry Stadium.
"The win is definitely a morale booster," head coach Tony da Luz said. "We played well. It seemed like we were a little fatigued today, but our subs gave us a spark at the end of the first half and in the second half. It was a tough game. Clemson made it hard for us and defended well."
Wake Forest honored its six seniors before the game and all six seniors were in the starting lineup for the game. Senior Whitney Berry assisted on the first goal of the game, while fellow senior Smerdzinski scored an insurance goal late in the second half.
The Deacons controlled the game offensively, holding a dominating 18-3 advantage in shots. Wake Forest had 10 shots on frame, while the Deacon defense held Clemson to only one shot on goal.
Junior goalkeeper Laura Morse notched her fifth shut out in the game. Morse made one save in the game to record the clean sheet.
The Deacons jumped on top early, scoring in the fourth minute. Berry crossed the ball from the right side of the field. The ball found Hutchinson inside the six-yard box, near the left post. Hutchinson snuck the ball inside the left post to give Wake a 1-0 advantage. The goal for Hutchinson was her team-leading seventh of the season.
Wake Forest had a great chance to extend the lead to 2-0 in the 38th minute, getting three shots in the span of 15 seconds. Allie Sadow took two shots, one that was saved by the Clemson goalkeeper and the other shot was cleared off the line by a Clemson defender. Amanda Lebo got the third shot on a header, sending the ball just high of the net.
Clemson had its only shot on goal of the game in the 72nd minute. Rachel Hurd's shot was saved by Morse to keep the score at 1-0.
The Deacons got an insurance goal in the 82nd minute from Smerdzinski, her third goal of the season. Sarah Winslow played a short pass to Smerdzinski. Smerdzinski unleashed a shot from 22 yards out that found the left side of the goal to give Wake Forest a 2-0 advantage.
"Amy really connected on that goal," da Luz said. "Going to the far post on that shot is textbook. She was really good today."
Clemson was only able to get one more shot in the game as Samantha Fortier's shot sailed wide.
Wake Forest is back in action on Thursday, traveling to Tallahassee, Fla., to meet Florida State. Opening kickoff is set for 7 p.m. (ET) and the game will be televised by FSN Florida.
