Tigers Take On No. 3 Tar Heels

CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson men’s soccer team will face its second straight top-three opponent on Friday night when they travel to conference foe North Carolina for a matchup with the No. 3 Tar Heels.

North Carolina Match Information
Who: Clemson Tigers (4-3-1; 0-2-0 ACC) vs. No. 3 North Carolina Tar Heels (6-1-0, 2-0-0 ACC)
When: Friday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m.
Where: WakeMed Soccer Park // Cary, N.C.
Watch: http://www.espn.com/watch/_/id/3429021/clemson-vs-north-carolina-m-soccer
Live Stats: https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=226210&vislive=clem

Clemson Notes:

• Clemson most recently saw action last Friday night in a 3-0 loss to No. 1 Wake Forest at Historic Riggs Field.
• Adrian Nuñez leads the team with three goals on the year, good for six points.
• Aside from Nuñez, seven Tigers have all found the back of the net at least once this season: Tanner Dieterich (2), Grayson Barber (1), Patrick Bunk-Andersen (1), Malick Mbaye (1), Quinn McNeill (1), John Murphy Jr. (1) and Kimarni Smith (1).
• Andrew Burnikel, Nate Hall, Johnny Heckman, Chris Matlashewski and Cale Thorne have all added assists, with Barber contributing a pair as well.
• Keeper Jonny Sutherland has seen the majority of action in goal for the Tigers, totaling 18 saves against nine goals allowed in 617 minutes over seven matches. George Marks made his collegiate debut in the Tigers’ Sept. 9 matchup with UMass, playing all 110 minutes of the double-overtime match and saving two shots while allowing no goals. Nolan Lennon played the final 11 minutes of the Tigers’ Sept. 18 match against Furman and allowed one goal.
• The Tigers are led by team captains Bunk-Andersen and Dieterich.

North Carolina Notes:

• The Tar Heels most recently saw action on Sept. 21 in a double-overtime victory at No. 8 Notre Dame, marking their second double-overtime conference win this season (Pitt – Sept. 8). Sophomore Giovanni Montesdeoca netted the golden goal in the 106^thminute and earned ACC Offensive Player of the Week for his performance.
• Montesdeoca has netted three goals this season, tied with junior Mauricio Pineda and senior Nils Bruening for the team lead. Pineda and Bruening have both added two assists and lead the team with eight points each.
• Senior keeper James Pyle has played all but six minutes in goal for the Tar Heels this season, allowing three goals against 10 saves in 660 minutes. Pyle’s four shutouts have him tied for second in the ACC with NC State’s Leon Krapf, and they rank behind Virginia’s Colin Shutler, who has posted five clean sheets this season.

Series Notes:

• The two teams have not met since 2016, a matchup that ended in a 1-0 Tar Heel win at Historic Riggs Field.
• The last time Clemson met North Carolina on the road when the Tar Heels were ranked in the top 10 and the Tigers were unranked was in 2014, and North Carolina just managed a 3-2 win in double overtime.
• North Carolina has won seven of the last 10 meetings, going back to 2007.
• Dating back to 1967, Clemson holds a 29-25-6 edge in the series.

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