No. 2 Clemson Hosts ACC Semifinal vs. No. 13 Syracuse Wednesday

Match Information:

What: 2015 ACC Tournament SemifinalWho: No. 3-Seed Clemson Tigers (15-1-2) vs. No. 7-Seed Syracuse Orange (11-5-3)When: Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m.Where: Historic Riggs Field, Clemson, S.C.RPI: Clemson – No. 2; Syracuse – No. 8Rankings: Clemson – No. 2 NSCAA, No. 2 Soccer America; Syracuse – No. 13 NSCAAFollow: @ClemsonMSoccer on Twitter and InstagramLive Video: ESPN3 (http://es.pn/1WMvqJX)Live Stats: ClemsonTigers.com (http://statb.us/b/111031)Tickets: (http://bit.ly/1OtZZzO)  

Clemson Team Notes:

• Clemson has now reached at least the semifinals of the ACC Tournament each of the last four years, as the team advanced to the semifinals in 2012 and 2013, and won the ACC Tournament Championship in 2014.
• Clemson is the only ACC school to host a conference tournament match each of the last four years, as Head Coach Mike Noonan’s program has hosted a quarterfinal contest each season since 2012.
• The Tigers defeated Boston College 3-0 in the ACC Quarterfinals on Sunday, Nov. 8. Junior Austen Burnikel and redshirt senior Kyle Murphy both scored in the contest, while an own goal provided the third Clemson goal. Redshirt junior Andrew Tarbell recorded his eighth clean sheet of the season against the Eagles.
• The Tigers finished the regular season with a 14-1-2 overall record and a 6-1-1 mark in ACC play. This is the first time since the 2001 season that the team has accumulated 14 wins in regular season play.
• The Tigers were unbeaten in regular season home games, going 9-0-1 in games played at Historic Riggs Field in 2015. It is the 11^th time in program history, and the first time since 1998, that the team has been unbeaten at home during the regular season.
• Clemson was also unbeaten in regular season nonconference play with an 8-0-1 record. The team’s only draw in nonconference play came against No. 11 Coastal Carolina on Sept. 7.
• The Tigers have now won nine straight games, dating back to a 4-0 victory at Gardner-Webb on Sept. 29. In addition, the team has not lost in 13 consecutive games, dating back to a 3-0 win at Furman on Sept. 15.
• The team is ranked in the top five in the nation in five scoring categories – third in points per game (7.00) and total points (126), fourth in scoring offense (2.39) and fifth in total goals (43) and total assists (40).
• Clemson is second in the RPI rankings released on Monday, Nov. 9. Five of the top eight teams in the RPI are from the ACC (No. 1 Wake Forest, No. 4 North Carolina, No. 7 Notre Dame, No. 8 Syracuse).

Clemson Player Notes:

• Seven Clemson players were honored by the ACC when it announced its 2015 award winners on Tuesday, Nov. 10. Senior Paul Clowes was named ACC Midfielder of the Year and senior Kyle Fisher was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year. Clowes and Fisher were joined on the All-ACC First Team by senior T.J. Casner and redshirt junior Andrew Tarbell. Junior Iman Mafi and sophomore Oliver Shannon were named to the All-ACC Third Team, and rookie Patrick Bunk-Andersen was named to the ACC All-Freshman Team.
• Senior T.J. Casner leads the team in goals (8) and points (19). The eight goals put him in a tie for third in the ACC, while his goals per game average of 0.44 is tied for fourth in the conference.
• Casner has a team-best five game-winning goals, a figure which ranks tied for first in the ACC and eighth in the nation in that statistical category.
• Five other Tigers have at least 10 points on the season, redshirt senior Kyle Murphy (18), junior Austen Burnikel (16), sophomore Oliver Shannon (13), junior Iman Mafi (11) and sophomore Diego Campos (10).
• 11 players have scored at least one goal for Clemson so far this season, while 16 have tallied at least one assist.
• Redshirt junior goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell is 15-1-2 in goal for the Tigers, registering 60 saves and allowing just 11 goals on the season, while playing over 1,654 minutes in the net.
• Tarbell’s save percentage of .845 ranks first in the ACC and sixth in the nation, while his goals against average of 0.598 ranks first in the conference and ninth nationally.
• Tarbell also has eight solo shutouts on the season, a figure which is first among all keepers in the ACC.

Syracuse Notes:

• Syracuse is 11-5-3 overall and finished the ACC regular season at 3-4-1.
• In the ACC Quarterfinals, the Orange tied North Carolina 1-1 in Chapel Hill, N.C., and then advanced in penalty kicks, 4-3.
• Julian Buescher leads the Orange in scoring with eight goals and seven assists for 23 points. Three more players, Ben Polk (18), Chris Nanco (11) and Oyvind Alseth (11) are also in double-figures in scoring.
• Syracuse keeper Hendrik Hilpert has a 5-3-2 record in goal, with 22 saves and just 11 goals allowed. Austin Aviza is 6-2-1 in goal for the Orange, and has recorded 22 saves and allowed just nine goals.

Series Notes:

• Wednesday’s meeting will be just the third in the series between the Tigers and Orange, and both previous matches have been decided by just one goal.
• When the two teams met during the 2015 regular season on Oct. 17 in Syracuse, Clemson won 1-0 in a dramatic finish, which saw redshirt senior Kyle Murphy, a native of Red Hook, N.Y., steal the ball and take it down the field to score unassisted with just 51 seconds left in regulation.
• In 2014, the Orange defeated the Tigers 1-0 on Sept. 20 at Historic Riggs Field.