Strong Second Half Leads Cougars to Victory Over Spartans

Saturday, September 12

Spartanburg, S.C.

1:00 PM

College of Charleston

4-1-1, 1-1-0

USC Upstate

2-5-0, 0-0-0

Team	1	2	Final F
Col. of Charleston	0	2	2
USC Upstate	1	0	1

Strong Second Half Leads Cougars to Victory Over Spartans

9/12/2026 5:26:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The College of Charleston men's soccer team used a two-goal second half to defeat USC Upstate 2-1 on the road Saturday afternoon for the program's second straight victory.

After an evenly matched opening ten minutes, Michiharu Takanashi had an open net opportunity off a pass from Ryan Watson but missed just wide right. The Cougars then immediately blocked a flurry of three straight Spartan shot attempts on the defensive end to keep the scoreboard blank after thirty minutes of action.

USC Upstate broke the stalemate in the 32^nd minute to send the Spartans into the break up 1-0.

In the 65^th minute, Arnau Ollé scored his first goal as a Cougar on a 1-on-1 attempt in the box. Immediately following Ollé's goal, the teams entered a lengthy 90-minute weather delay.

After returning to play, Matt Lenert continued his impressive campaign by adding Charleston's second goal by draining a volley on a second chance attempt to put the Cougars up 2-1 and secure the victory.

Lenert's goal marked his sixth of the season and 20^th of his career. The senior currently leads the CAA in goals (six), total points (14), and game winning goals (two). He is tied for the eighth most goals in program history.

The Cougars outshot the Spartans 13-12, led by Lenert with four and followed by Ollé with two. Nine different Cougars attempted a shot.

Charleston, now 4-1-1, will return to CAA play on Saturday, September 19 at Elon. Action is set for 12:00 p.m.

For complete coverage of Charleston men's soccer, follow us on X (@CofCSoccer) and Instagram (@CofCSoccer).