Rock Hill, S.C.— The regular season comes to an end for Winthrop men's soccer Wednesday night as it travels to Gardner-Webb. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS GARDNER-WEBB
This marks the 27
th meeting all-time between Winthrop and Gardner-Webb. The two teams met in the spring season in Rock Hill for the Eagles final home game as the Runnin' Bulldogs held on for a 1-0 win. This will be the third time in the last five seasons Winthrop has face Gardner-Webb in its final regular season game. Winthrop leads the all-time series 16-7-3, but have dropped three of the last four meetings. Winthrop's last road in the series came in 2015 with a 4-3 win in double overtime. Gardner-Webb has outscored the Eagles 12-2 in the last four meetings.
FOOT NOTES
- Coming off a thrilling comeback victory over Radford to end a four-game skid
- After being voted to finish last in the Big South preseason poll, the Eagles have ensured themselves of a Top 4 finish in the league standings
- With a victory over Gardner-Webb or a draw or loss by Longwood who plays Radford
- Eagles scored at least three goals in a game for the 7th time this season in the win over Radford
- It was also the third overtime victory on the year
- On the season the Eagles have scored seven goals in the final 10 minutes of regulation and a total of 10 goals after the 80th minute
- Offensively the Eagles are tied for 31st in the country in scoring at 2.0 goals per game
- Eagles are second in the league behind Campbell in scoring
- Freshman Brigham Larsen leads the team in goals with eight, which ranks second in the conference
- He's first in the league in goals per game and ranks third in points per game
- Larsen ranks tied for 35th in total goals nationally and tied for 41st in goals per game
- In conference games only, Larsen ranks first in goals and goals per game and 4th in points per game
- Sophomore Bryant Jimenez-Pearce is coming off a two-goal performance and is now tied for 7th in the league with five goals and tied for 6th in points per game
- This game marks the 936th in the history of the program with 453 wins all-time
- Daniel Ridenhour is in his sixth season as the head coach of the Eagles after serving the previous 12 seasons as an associate/assistant coach
EAGLES FEATURE TOP OFFENSE, BUT SO DOES MANY OF ITS OPPONENTS
While the Eagles have boasted one of the top scoring teams in the country this season, their defense has had to endure its share of facing opponents among the top scoring teams nationally. As of Oct. 29, there are five opponents ranked in the Top 50 in scoring in UNC Greensboro (1
st), Campbell (8
th), Georgia State (28
th), Virginia Tech (31
st), and Stetson (44
th). Mercer is just outside the Top 50 at 51
st and Radford is 61
st.
ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS
Sean Green's goal on the kickoff following the Stetson goal is ranked in the Top 5 all-time at the NCAA D1 level for the fastest consecutive goals by opposing teams. In the spring of 2021, Winthrop scored 12 seconds into the game at South Carolina as
Jonathan Foster netted one of the quickest goals in program history.
BIG SOUTH AWARDS
Bryant Jimenez-Pearce – Offensive Player of the Week (Nov. 1)
- Scored two goals, including the game-winner in the win over Radford
- Cut the Radford lead in half in the 86th minute when he converted a penalty
- Scored the game-winner on a corner kick in the 103rd minute
- It was his second golden goal of the season
Ethan Stevenson – Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 4)
- Had a hand in five of the team's seven goals on the week in two victories
- Scored the game-winner in the win over Mercer and set up the third goal of the match
- In the 4-0 win over Asheville he was involved with three of the goals
Brigham Larsen – Freshman of the Week (Sept. 13 / Oct. 11 / Oct. 18)
- Scored two second half goals in the 3-1 win over Furman that included the game-winner in the 58th minute
- Continuing to apply pressure offensively, Larsen added an insurance goal in the 89th minute
- Earned Freshman of the Week honors a second time when he scored in a 3-2 loss at Longwood and then netted the game-winning goal in the 4-0 win over PC
- Garnered a third freshman of the week honor after scoring two goals in a 3-2 overtime road win against USC Upstate
- Both goals came in the final 22 minutes including the game-tying goal in the 83rd minute
LOOKING AHEAD
The Eagles will have to wait a day to find out what seed they will be in the Big South Conference Tournament. Longwood and Radford play Thursday evening at 6 p.m. Winthrop is guaranteed a Top 4 finish and will host a quarterfinals game on Sunday, Nov. 7.
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