CLEMSON, S.C. – Maria Manousos netted her second goal of the year in the 81’ and Clemson earned its second-straight ACC win: a 2-1 victory over Miami. The win moves the Tigers to 6-5-2 on the year, 2-4 in ACC play, while the loss drops Miami to 4-6-3, 0-4-2 in the ACC.
Manousos assisted on the first goal and scored the second, giving her three points on the day. Freshman Anna Castenfelt netted her first collegiate goal and goalkeeper Nona Reason continued her hard work in conference play, making four saves.
“It was a good win,” Head Coach Eddie Radwanski said. “It was good to get a win like this, Maria scored a great goal late in the second half. It makes it even more special because we are celebrating the 30th year of Clemson Women’s Soccer. We had so many incredible former players come out here to be a part of this event, which was really special. It was great to have the Clemson family, I actually think them being here was one of the reasons we won this game. I thought they brought great energy, great positivity and I know our girls didn’t want to let them down. We could feel the support from the stands. It was great to win, it was great to win in front of them and it was great to get an ACC win.”
The Tigers brought the energy early as they were able to find the back of the net seven minutes into the match. With 7:42 on the clock, Manousos created a scoring opportunity as she saw Kendall Bodak open towards the top of the box. Manousos serviced the ball to Bodak but the freshman was unable to get a touch off of the ball as she was blocked by a Miami defender. The ball slid past Bodak but found Anna Castenfelt open as she knocked the ball in off her right foot towards the top of the goal for the first goal of her career.
Miami tied the game at one in the 32’ and neither team was able to cash in another scoring opportunity in the half’s final 13 minutes, sending the match to halftime tied at one.
Neither team created many opportunities in the second half until, as the game entered the 81’, Castenfelt gathered a loose ball and played it wide down the field. It was gathered by a streaking Manousos, who dribbled it past a Miami defender and into the box before firing it into the top right corner past a diving Hurricane keeper, giving the Tigers the 2-1 victory.
During halftime, the Tigers honored and celebrated all three decades of the women’s soccer program as Alumni from the last 30 years were recognized on the field in honor of the 30th Anniversary.
Up next, the Tigers will head to Chapel Hill, N.C. on Thursday, October 17 to take on No. 2 North Carolina. The match is slated for 7 p.m. and will be streamed on ACCNX.
For complete coverage of the Clemson women’s soccer team, follow @ClemsonWSoccer on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
