Clemson defeats Fourth-Ranked Maryland, 5-3

Oct. 3, 2008

CLEMSON, SC – Michael Brooks scored four goals and had one assist in leading Clemson in a 5-3 upset win over fourth-ranked Maryland in an Atlantic Coast Conference men’s soccer match at Clemson, SC Friday night. The Tigers’ Greg Eckhardt also had two assists in the victory.

With the win, Clemson improves to 3-4-2 overall and 2-1-1 in the ACC. Maryland falls to 7-3 overall and 2-2 in league play. Jeremy Hall scored two goals for Maryland and Doug Rodkey had two assists for the Terrapins.

This was the first time since the 1999 season that a Clemson player has scored four goals in a single match. The last player to accomplish this feat was Mark Lisi with four goals vs. Winthrop on October 13, 1999. In the history of Clemson men’s soccer, this is the 97th hat trick scored by a Tiger. It was also the most goals scored against an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent since the 1975 season as Christian Nwokocha scored five goals against Duke on October 26, 1975.

“I’m so happy and proud,” said Brooks, who is a senior graphic communications major from Fredricksburg, VA. “I dedicate tonight’s performance to our team. We work so hard and it’s paying off. I give all of my teammates the credit. We are a team. Greg Eckhardt could have easily scored one of the goals but instead he sent the pass to me and I was there to knock it in. That’s the kind of team we have. We executed the great game plan that the coaches had for us tonight. Again, I dedicate what I did to our team.”

Maryland scored first at the 26:35 mark as Jeremy Hall scored from an assist by Doug Rodkey.

Clemson evened the score right before halftime (39:01). Brooks scored with assists by Greg Eckhardt.

The Terrapins went ahead 2-1 in the 62nd minute. Casey Townsend scored his sixth goal of the year with another assist by Rodkey.

Clemson again tied the score in the 73rd minute as Brooks scored with assists by Francklin Blaise and Eckhardt.

Maryland took a 3-2 lead at the 75:31 mark as Hall scored on a penalty kick. This was Hall’s fourth goal of the season.

The Tigers scored three goals in the last 11:42 of the match. Michael Brooks scored his third goal of the evening (78:18) with an assist by Bryson Moore to tie the score 3-3.

Clemson went ahead for good :22 seconds later as Hassan Ibrahim scored his third goal of the season with assists by Brooks and John Tardy at the 78:50 point in the match. It was Ibrahim’s third goal of the year. The :22 seconds between these two Tiger goals is tied for the fourth shortest time elapsed between two goals in school history.

Brooks gave the Tigers a 5-3 advantage at the 79:41 mark as he scored his fourth goal of the night with assists by Eric Cava and Tommy Drake.

This was also the 51st win for Clemson Head Coach Trevor Adair over a top 25 team.

“I had a feeling that we could be successful tonight because of the way we practiced this week,” said Clemson Head Coach Michael Brooks. We’ve come a long way. This team is finding itself. We are finding a rhythm. We now must get ready to play Virginia. I am real proud of the coaching staff and our players. I want to thank the fans for not giving up on us. We are beginning to believe in ourselves. We are starting to correct the mistakes. This win tonight is something we can build on and carry with us.”

Clemson will play at Virginia next Friday night, October 10, in the Tigers’ next action.

Clemson 5, Maryland 3 Maryland-Jeremy Hall (Doug Rodkey) 26:35 Clemson-Michael Brooks (Greg Eckhardt) 39:01 Maryland-Casey Townsend (Doug Rodkey) 61:16 Clemson-Michael Brooks (Greg Eckhardt, Francklin Blaise) 72:35 Maryland-Jeremy Hall (Penalty Kick) 75:31 Clemson-Michael Brooks (Bryson Moore) 78:18 Clemson-Hassan Ibrahim (Michael Brooks, John Tardy) 78:50 Clemson-Michael Brooks (Eric Cava, Tommy Drake) 79:41

Shots: Clemson 14, Maryland 18Corner Kicks: Clemson 7, Maryland 13Saves: Joseph Bendik (CU) 5, Will Swaim (M) 1, Zac Macmath (M) 0Fouls: Clemson 11, Maryland 10Attendance: 1,828