Clemson Falls to No. 7 Charlotte 1-0 at Riggs Field

CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson men’s soccer team could not overcome an early score from No. 7 Charlotte Tuesday night at Historic Riggs Field, falling 1-0 to the 49ers. Clemson’s record now stands at 5-6-0 overall and 2-2-0 in ACC play on the season.

Charlotte’s score came off an own goal in the eighth minute. Clemson had several good chances in the final minutes of the second half when they were awarded three consecutive corner kicks. Junior T.J. Casner took two of the attempts and sophomore Thales Moreno attempted the third, but the Tigers were unable to capitalize.

Casner, Clemson’s leader in points and goals, attempted four shots on the night, two of which were on goal. Moreno, freshman Saul Chinchilla and juniors Kyle Fisher and Kyle Murphy each took two shots.

“I’m proud of our guys because they played well,” head coach Mike Noonan said. “They didn’t play well against North Carolina, but they did tonight and just didn’t finish. We will focus on the performance though, which was very good. 

As a team, Clemson held the advantage in shots 15-9. The Tigers attempted eight corner kicks to Charlotte’s four. Sophomore goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell played a full 90 minutes of action on his birthday and saved one shot. 

In a physical game, Charlotte was called for 22 fouls, including 14 in the second half. Clemson was called for 11 in the match. 

“We had great support from our fans on a rainy Tuesday night,” Noonan said. “These are the days where championships are made. Unfortunately, we just came up a little short tonight.”

The Tigers hit the road this weekend to face Pittsburgh in ACC play. The match kicks off at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11.

Clemson 0, #7 Charlotte 1

SCORING SUMMARY Charlotte – OWN GOAL 7:04 Shots: Clemson 15, Charlotte 9 Corner Kicks: Clemson 8, Charlotte 4 Saves: Tarbell (CU) 1, Pack (UC) 3 Fouls: Clemson 11, Charlotte 22