Wake Forest Athletics
Demon Deacons Face Clemson in a Top-Five Matchup
4/1/2021 1:00:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Two of the top four teams in the country will meet on Friday night when No. 4 Wake Forest faces No. 1 Clemson in South Carolina.
CLEMSON, S.C. -- No. 4 Wake Forest (11-2-1, 3-0-1) and No. 1 Clemson (12-2-1, 4-0-0) will meet for a third team this season on Friday night at Historic Riggs Field. Currently, the Tigers (12 points) and Demon Deacons (10 points) sit atop the Atlantic Division of the ACC Standings with just two regular season games remaining.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the match will be streamed on ACC Network Extra.
The Matchup
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The Demon Deacons enter the contest No. 4 in the latest United Soccer Coaches rankings, as this week's inclusion marked the 82nd-straight week of appearing in the top-25.
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Additionally, Wake Forest has appeared in the top-10 of that poll for 62-straight weeks.
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Wake Forest opened the spring portion of the season with a 4-0-1 record in the month of March, highlighted by a trio of last-minute victories over ACC foes.
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The Demon Deacons climbed back into the top-five of the national rankings following a 2-1 victory over Louisville last Saturday.
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The Tigers enter the match as the No. 1 team in the country and winners of seven-straight matches dating back to the fall when they won the ACC Tournament.
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Clemson has won all four of its spring matches to date, most recently defeating Boston College 3-2 last weekend.
Last Time Out
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Wake Forest for a second-straight game bounced back from an early deficit, this time to defeat Louisville 2-1.
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Sophomore Omar Hernandez scored his first-career brace, logging goals off a free kick (55') and penalty kick (93').
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Hernandez was named to the Teams of the Week for TopDrawerSoccer and College Soccer News.
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The Demon Deacons outshot the Cardinals 17-9.
Scouting the Tigers
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The Tigers are currently the consensus No. 1 team in the country, topping all three national polls.
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Rank ninth nationally in goal differential (+15) and have outscored their opponents 8-3 this spring.
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James Brighton is currently the leading goal scorer still on the roster as he has collected five goals on the season including one last week against Boston College.
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George Marks has played nearly every minute in net this season, allowing just .951 goals against per match.
Looking Ahead
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Wake Forest will close out the regular season on Friday, April 9, traveling to New York to face Syracuse.
