It's officially game week for South Carolina's football team, but there are a handful of other sports going on around the university with three teams having good weeks, including some dramatic wins over top 25 opponents.
Volleyball and both soccer programs behind their respective seasons this week with each program picking up at least one win, including volleyball earning two ranked wins and women's soccer starting undefeated through three games.
Men's soccer also got a win over Winthrop, the first of the Tony Annan era.
Here's a recap of how things went this week in Gamecock sports.
Volleyball
Tom Mendoza’s team got off to a hot start, beating two of the three top 25 teams they played this weekend in the Carolina Classic.
It started with a massive 3-2 win over No. 18 Washington State after falling behind 2-0 before winning the final three sets to win the match: 25-13, 25-21 and 15-13.
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The next day South Carolina took down No. 23 Rice 3-1 to improve to 2-0 on the season and setting up a big matchup with No. 9 Pittsburgh, which the Gamecocks lost 3-0 for the first loss of the season.
It was a successful weekend for the Gamecocks with three quality opponents before hosting the Palmetto Showdown with matchups between Clemson (Friday) and UCF (Thursday and Friday).
We knew with such good opponents this week, no matter the result, the fans were going to get their money's worth and I think regardless of what that final score in the fifth set was, I think that was the case,” Mendoza said.
“I'm glad we got the reward of finishing the match, but I think it's just such a valuable learning experience especially starting three freshmen in the lineup. I thought they played very composed but just this experience is so valuable for a team that still is still gelling early in the season.
Women’s soccer
It was a great week for the top 25 program, winning all three of their games, including two away from home with a dramatic come-from-behind win Sunday at NC State.
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After blowout wins over College of Charleston (3-0) and East Carolina (3-1), South Carolina fell behind 1-0 early to the Wolfpack before the equalizer came in the 25th minute.
Sophomore Corinna Zullo gave the Gamecocks the dramatic 2-1 win, though, slotting the game-winning goal with 45 seconds left in regulation.
"I'm very proud of the team today," head coach Shelley Smith said. "We stayed together through the 90 minutes and found a way to get the win against a strong opponent on the road. After giving up a disappointing goal early in the game, the response was tremendous. It was a complete team effort as we managed to stay strong through the whole match. Both teams had chances and battle the heat."
The Gamecocks have one game this week—a home contest against Boston College Thursday—before hosting Charlotte Sept. 6.
Men’s soccer
After disappointing 1-0 loss in extra time to College of Charleston to begin the Tony Annan era, the Gamecocks rebounded Sunday night with a convincing 4-1 win over Winthrop at Stone Stadium.
With the game tied 1-1 in the first half, punched in a header in the 35th minute to give South Carolina the lead for good with Brian Banahan and Christian Kraus adding second-half goals to punctuate the win.
It’s the first win of the Annan era, and the Gamecocks are continuing to show signs of playing with the style Annan wants them as he takes over.
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“I thought the guys gave as much tonight as the game the other night. I think it was bit more of a football match as far as the space we were allowed to play in but also the other team played very well and tried to play and did a very good job. It felt like a bit of a better match,” Annan said.
“I was pleased with our group, their effort, their transition to defend was better and also the confidence with the ball. a little sliver of that started to come out, which is all small steps in the overall process. I’m happy for them, happy with their effort individually and as a group and a unit.”
Next up is the Gamecocks’ annual rivalry game against Clemson with South Carolina traveling up there for a 7 p.m. kickoff Friday night.
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