Clemson To Host Nike Invitational This Weekend

Sept. 27, 2001

Clemson, SC – The 17th-ranked Clemson men’s soccer team will host the Nike Invitational this weekend at Historic Riggs Field. On Friday, fourth-ranked Furman (4-1) will face 20th-ranked Virginia Commonwealth (4-1-1) at 5:00 PM and Clemson (4-2) will play Cal Poly (1-1-1) at 7:30 PM. On Sunday, Furman and Cal Poly will play at 12:30 PM and Virginia Commonwealth and Clemson will face off at 3:00 PM.

Clemson is 1-0 all-time against Cal Poly with the only match being a 7-1 Clemson win back in 1998. Sunday’s match with Virginia Commonwealth will mark the first time the two schools have met in men’s soccer.

This season for Clemson, senior Ian Fuller and junior Dimelon Westfield lead the team and are tied for third in the ACC with nine points each. Ross Goodacre, Paul Souders, and Steven Rhyne are each tied for second on the team with seven points. Westfield and Rhyne have three assists each and are tied for third best in the league in that category. In goal for the Tigers, junior Doug Warren has started five out of the six games and has a 1.04 goals against average for the season. In his 11th year of coaching, Head Coach Trevor Adair has career record of 120-60-15 and a 86-36-10 mark in seven years at Clemson.

Furman is coached by Doug Allsion who has a 95-25-9 record in six years. John Barry Nussum is the the team’s leading scorer with six goals and three assists for 15 points. Scott Hoch has three goals. Goalkeeper Scott Blount has a 1.09 goals-against average with a dozen saves.

Cal Poly enters this weekend’s action after a 4-1 win over Illinois-Chicago, a 4-0 loss to Cal Berkeley, and a 1-1 tie with Long Island University. Midfielder James Newton scored a goal in each of the first two matches for the Mustangs. Midfielders Barrymore Matthews and Francisco Marmolejo along with defender Ramon-Deep each scored goals against Illinois-Chicago.

Virginia Commonwealth is ranked 20th by the latest CollegeSoccer.com poll and enters the Invitational fresh off a 2-1 overtime win over Richmond last Saturday. Their only loss of the season came in overtime at the hands of Seton Hall on September 2. The Rams are led by Obie Gravely who has five goals and 10 points for the season. Mathew Delicate is second on the team with four goals and eight points.