With the win, the Lobos (11-5-1, 4-4-0) earned the No. 5 seed and will face the Conference USA tournament host Old Dominion (fourth-seed) on Wednesday for quarterfinal action.
“I was real proud of our guys,” head coach Jeremy Fishbein said. “There were some nerves going in because it was a big game. It was important to get that (win) under the belt and send the seniors out in style.”
Prior to the match the Lobos celebrated the careers of their six seniors: forward James Rogers, goalie Patrick Poblete, midfielder Oniel Fisher, defender Nick Miele, defender Riley McGovern and defender Mathew Gibbons.
“It was fun that we actually came out and played well and as a team,” Rogers said. “We wanted to win this game; it was our last home game as seniors, and we got a good result.”
Fishbein said he was happy with the win, but admitted South Carolina (8-9, 3-5-0) proved to be a worthy opponent that did not easily hand over the victory.
“They made it difficult tonight,” he said.
The statistics were even, with the Lobos leading only 10-9 in shots and with each team recording three corner kicks.
The Lobos gained their lead when a South Carolina handball granted them a penalty kick in the seventh minute. Rogers sent the ball into the right hand corner of the net, scoring his fourth goal of the season and his 22nd career goal at UNM.
Not satisfied with just that, the Lobos doubled their lead twelve minutes later. Midfielder/forward Niko Hansen found midfielder Chris Wehan, whose strike from the far right wing became his ninth goal of the season.
The Gamecocks kept on grinding and finally managed to get on the scoreboard in minute 77. Forward Wesley Eads took advantage of a corner and sent the ball into the Lobo net for his first goal of the season.
With more than ten minutes remaining, the Gamecocks desperately looked to tie the game, but the UNM defense held tight to give the Lobos the victory.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
There is not much time to celebrate, however, as the C-USA tournament begins this week.
“South Carolina was very good,” Fishbein said. “But now we’re going to recover well, head to the conference tournament, and our plan is to win it.”
Earlier in the season the Lobos recorded a 4-0 shutout against the Old Dominion Monarchs.
Isabel Gonzalez is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @cisabelg.
