No. 15 South Carolina holds off gritty Boston College

NEWTON, MA – The No. 15 South Carolina women’s soccer team (2-0-1) took down Boston College (0-2-1) in an action-packed game Thursday night, with speed making all the difference.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Gamecocks held a strong possession throughout the first 15 minutes, with three shots making it onto the board from Megan Spiehs, Shae O’Rourke, and Cat Barry
• 20 minutes in, O’Rourke capitalized on a turnover straight through the middle of two Boston College defenders and found the back of the net past the Eagles’ keeper Wiebke Willebrandt to put the Gamecocks up 1-0
• Boston College responded with an equalizer 15 minutes later
• Just two minutes after the Eagles tied things up, a foul inside the box called on Boston College’s Andi Barth set the Gamecocks up for a penalty kick. 5th year Camryn Dixon took the shot, finding the connection for her first goal of the season and putting South Carolina back on top 2-1
• Coming into the second half, O’Rourke sent a beautiful pass up the middle to Massachusetts native Barry, where she knocked it in directly past Willebrandt into an empty net just 45 seconds after coming back onto the field to put her team up 3-1 in front of family and friends
• The Eagles brought things within a goal in the 60th minute, but the Gamecocks’ defense held Boston College back and finished with a 3-2 victory
• South Carolina finished with a 12-6 shot advantage (seven on goal), and 5th year keeper Heather Hinz tallied two huge saves

UP NEXT

The Gamecocks will continue their stay in New England, taking on UMass-Lowell (0-1-2) on Sunday, Aug. 24 at 1:00 p.m.