Sept. 15, 2006

Clemson defeats North Carolina 1-0 Danny Poe scores the game winner

CLEMSON, SC--Danny Poe scored early in the second half in leading second-ranked Clemson to a 1-0 victory over fifth-ranked North Carolina at Historic Riggs Field in Clemson, SC.

Last Friday, Poe also had the winning goal as Clemson defeated number-one ranked Maryland 2-1 at Historic Riggs Field.

A crowd of 7,012 was on hand for the match, the second largest in Historic Riggs Field History. Last Friday, 6,821 fans attended the Clemson Maryland at Historic Riggs Field.

Clemson is now 7-0 on the year and 2-0 in the ACC. North Carolina falls to 6-2 overall and 0-2 in league play. This is the best start for Clemson since the 1978 season. That year, Clemson won its first 11 matches.

Clemson is ranked second by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll. The Tigers are also ranked third in both the Soccer America and Soccer Times polls. Clemson is ranked fourth by the College Soccer News. The Tar Heels are ranked fifth by Soccer America and sixth by Soccer News. In the soccer times.com poll the Tar Heels ranked seventh. North Carolina is ranked 16th by the NSCAA.

Clemson scored at the 53:54 mark. Dane Richards crossed the ball to Mark Buchholz at the top of the box. Buchholz passed the ball to Poe who scored from 10 yards out to give the Tigers the 1-0 lead. This was Poe's third goal of the season.

"It was a total team victory," said Clemson Head Coach Trevor Adair. "Our players gave it their all. The crowd was great again and this atmosphere is unbelievable. The players did everything we asked. I am happy for Danny Poe. He plays hard and gives great effort."

"I was at the right place at the right time," said Danny Poe. "I was lucky, it was an ugly goal, but a goal is a goal. North Carolina is a good team and our defense played tough and we held on for the win."

Clemson--Danny Poe (Mark Buchholz, Dane Richards) 53:54

Shots: Clemson 8, North Carolina 7

Corner Kicks: Clemson 4, North Carolina 4

Saves: Phil Marfuggi (CU) 1, Justin Hughes (NC) 2

Fouls: Clemson 21, North Carolina 8

Attendance: 7,012