Tigers Fall To Wake Forest In ACC Men’s Soccer Tournament

Nov. 9, 2000

Winston-Salem, N.C. – The fifth-seeded Wake Forest Demon Deacons played the fourth-seeded Clemson Tigers to a 2-2 tie Thursday night in a double overtime contest at Wake Forest’s Spry Stadium in the quarterfinals of the ACC Men’s Soccer Championship. In a tie-breaking penalty kick shootout, Wake Forest converted three and Clemson made only one, sending the Demon Deacons, 10-6-2 overall, to the semifinals where they will face the No. 1 seeded North Carolina Tar Heels in tomorrow’s game at 8:00 p.m. Clemson now stands 13-3-2 on the year.

After a scoreless first half, Jeremiah White got the Deacs on the board with a rocket from the top of the box, unassisted at the 51 minute mark. Three and a half minutes later, the Tigers hit the equalizer, when Fabio Tambosi collected a pass from Ian Fuller in front of the Wake Forest goal and blasted a shot past Wake Forest goalkeeper William Hesmer.

Fuller punched in the go ahead goal for Clemson in the 72nd minute when he split the Demon Deacon defenders and found net. Wake Forest senior captain Ben Stafford rallied his squad, took the ball and set up teammate Aaron Thomas for a goal 32 seconds later, tying the game at two apiece, where the score remained for the rest of regulation.

Two sudden victory 15 minute overtime periods later, the match ended 2-2. In a penalty kick shoutout, Tambosi cashed in the first one for Clemson and Thomas kicked in his for Wake Forest. The Demon Deacon goalkeeper William Hesmer stopped the next three tries by the Tigers as Stafford and Brian Carroll netted Wake Forest penalty kicks.

Clemson head coach Trevor Adair praised his players especially the play of Tiger defender Mike Potempa. “I think Mike Potempa is the best defender in the nation and I think he proved that tonight.”

Wake Forest head coach Jay Vidovich noted, “It was a typical ACC soccer game, a great game for both teams. I am proud of our guys and happy that they have the chance to play in the next round.”

                1       2       OT      OT2     FWake Forest     0       2       0       0       2Clemson         0       2       0       0       2

Scoring: WF White 51:00, CU Tambosi 54:33, CU Fuller 71:43, WF Thomas 72:06Shots: Wake Forest 16, Clemson 30Saves: Wake Forest 14, Clemson 5Corner Kicks: Wake Forest 10, Clemson 7Fouls: Wake Forest 15, Clemson 14