The No. 24 Clemson men’s soccer team defeated the No. 3 North Carolina Tar Heels by a score of 3-2 on Friday night. The Tigers (6-2-2, 3-0-2 ACC) shifted the momentum of their season, putting on an impressive performance to upset the No. 3-ranked team in the nation.
Clemson United battled hard against the Tar Heels, and the game remained scoreless for the first 20 minutes until North Carolina forward Martin Vician broke the stalemate with a shot to the bottom left of the goal to give the Tar Heels the lead.
Clemson United was able to answer back in the 30th minute when North Carolina was called for a foul. The Tigers were awarded a free kick, and Clemson midfielder Joran Gerbet was able to find the top right of the goal to score his third of the season and tie the match at 1-1.
The play from both teams was volatile, and fouls were called throughout the night. North Carolina finished with 16 fouls, and Clemson ended the match with 19 of its own. One such foul, a red card called on forward Remi Okunlola in the 68th minute, would leave the Tigers with only 10 players for the remainder of the match.
The second period saw the ACC opponents spar against one another as they looked for a chance to score. In the 84th minute, the Tigers managed to even the numbers on the field by forcing the Tar Heels to draw a red card. Gerbet converted on his penalty kick attempt, scoring for a second time to propel Clemson United to a 2-1 lead.
This was just the beginning of the fireworks that were to come; the momentum of the match made a drastic shift and excitement poured from the crowd. In the 85th minute, North Carolina drew a foul against Clemson forward Alex Meinhard, and Tar Heels midfielder Sam Williams snuck a penalty kick past Clemson goalkeeper Joseph Andema to tie the game at 2-2 with only five minutes remaining.
With a little under four minutes left in the game, Clemson forward Wahabu Musah dribbled through multiple defenders to set up Antonio Illuminato with a shot straight to the bottom of the goal. Up 3-2, the Tigers’ defense stood tall and defended against the Tar Heels’ fast-paced attack, closing the match with an upset win over a conference rival.
Clemson United will be on the road for their next match, as they travel to Louisville, Kentucky, to face off against the Cardinals on Oct. 11 at 8 p.m.
