The No. 2 Clemson men’s soccer team fell to the No. 5 Stanford Cardinal by a score of 3-2 at Historic Riggs Field on Friday night.
The loss marked the first time the Tigers have been defeated since their 1-0 defeat at Wake Forest 350 days ago, as well as the first time the team has lost at home in over a year. Clemson’s first in-conference matchup of the year was made even more significant by the Stanford squad’s recent addition to the reformed ACC.
The last time the teams met in December, Clemson rolled over the Cardinal to advance to the College Cup semifinals.
Although Clemson was the first on the board, scoring early in the third minute, Stanford’s momentum and fast-paced offense proved too much for the Tigers. Stanford (4-1) scored twice in the first half and again in the second to defeat the reigning national champion Tigers (1-1-1).
In the third minute of playtime, senior midfielder Joran Gerbet sent a corner to freshman center back Lukas Magnason, who found the top right corner of the net to open the scoring.
A foul called on Clemson goalkeeper Joseph Andema allowed Stanford to convert on a penalty kick and even the score in the first half. Gerbet was involved in the next goal, though not the way he would have preferred — when Stanford forward Alfonso Tenconi-Gradillas made contact with the ball and sent a header back off the crossbar, it ricocheted off Gerbet to score an own goal and give Stanford the lead going into halftime.
Throughout the first half, Clemson and Stanford were locked in a strong defensive battle, and the second half opened in the same manner. A lack of scoring resulted in frustration from both sides, and a small shoving match ensued.
Stanford appeared to be pulling away toward the end of the match when Stanford redshirt junior Shane de Flores snuck a shot past Andema to put Stanford up 3-1.
Just over a minute later, Gerbet sent a powerful shot to the left of the keeper, cutting the deficit to one score.
Gerbet received high praise from head coach Mike Noonan for his performance following the game.
“I think he’s one of the best, if not the best, midfielder in the country,” Noonan said. “One of the things we’ve asked of him for this year is a little bit more production when it comes to goals and assists, and obviously, he’s delivered to be a more complete player. That was the key, and his performance tonight was fantastic.”
The Tigers had one final opportunity to even the score, but a save by Stanford goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly ultimately ended the game.
“Physically, we’re not right there, but we kept going until the end of the game and obviously, you know, pushed them, but we didn’t run out of any gas, and we played, and we’ve got great depth on our team,” Noonan added.
The Tigers will next face off against Loyola Maryland on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Historic Riggs Field.
