Tigers Travel to Coral Gables to Face Miami Thursday

CLEMSON, SC – The Clemson women’s soccer team will travel to Coral Gables, FL on Thursday to face Miami in its final game of the 2013 regular season.  The contest between the Tigers and Hurricanes will kick off at 7 PM at Cobb Stadium.

Clemson has a 7-7-4 record (4-6-2 ACC), and is coming off two 2-0 losses last week, to #4 North Carolina on the road in Chapel Hill and #12 Notre Dame at Historic Riggs Field.  The two games against ranked opponents last week were the Tigers’ sixth out of the last eight against teams ranked 19^th or better nationally.

Senior midfielder Vanessa Laxgang leads the team in scoring with five goals and two assists for 12 points, while freshman forward Catrina Atanda ranks second with four goals for eight points.  Three Tigers – Tabitha Padgett, Kylie Tawney and Deana Sherry – are tied for third on the team in scoring with seven points apiece.

Freshman Kailen Sheridan has 65 saves on the season, a figure that places her in a tie for fourth among all Atlantic Coast Conference goalkeepers.  She has also posted seven solo shutouts on the year, which ranks in a tie for third in the league.  If the season were to end today, Sheridan would rank in the top 10 in Clemson history in three single-season statistical categories – fourth in goals allowed average (0.88), tied for sixth in solo shutouts (7) and seventh in save percentage (.802).

The Hurricanes are 8-8-1 overall (3-8-1 ACC) and most recently fell to #1 Virginia (4-0) and #4 Virginia Tech (1-0) on the road.  Ashley Flinn leads Miami in scoring with 10 goals for 20 points, while Emily Lillard has posted 64 saves and has given up 30 goals in 17 games in the net.

Clemson has a 2-6-1 record in the series against Miami, which dates back to the 2004 season.  In games played in Coral Gables, the Tigers are 1-2-1 all-time.  In the most recent meeting between the two teams in Coral Gables, the Tigers suffered a 3-2 double-overtime loss on September 15, 2011.