Charlotte 49ers fall in OT to Clemson in NCAA men’s soccer tournament

A deflected shot that bounced off a goal post and ricocheted into the net ended the Charlotte 49ers’ men’s soccer season Sunday night.

Grayson Barber’s goal in the fourth minute of overtime lifted second-seeded Clemson to a 2-1 victory over Charlotte in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

The Tigers (17-2-1) will host Providence in the third round next Sunday.

Charlotte (12-4-4), making its 14th appearance in the tournament, was outshot badly but battled back to tie the match and send it to overtime.

Charlotte coach Kevin Langan called it “a tough way to lose.”

“I knew we were going to have to withstand some spells of pressure, since Clemson is a strong team,” he said. “I thought we did that well.”

After a scoreless first half, Clemson took a 1-0 lead at the 55:36 mark on Robbie Robinson’s

16th goal of the season. Robinson, with his back facing the Charlotte goal, took a pass from Alvaro Gomez, spun around, and delivered a low shot into the net.

But sophomore forward Preston Popp of Mooresville tied the match 17 minutes later. Delari Batse’s inbounds throw landed near the front of the Clemson goal, and Popp swooped in from the left side and deflected the ball into the net.

“We went a goal down, and our response as a group was fantastic,” Langan said.

The 49er defense held off several Clemson threats in the closing minutes, forcing the overtime.

At the 93:11 mark, Barber took a shot from about 10 yards out from the goal. The ball appeared to be deflected by a 49er defender, then banged into the left post on the goal and bounced into the net, behind Charlotte goalkeeper Elliot Panicco.

“Elliot was fantastic tonight,” Langan said. “He is the best college goalkeeper in the country.”

ICYMI

▪ Clemson outshot Charlotte 19-6, and 49ers’ senior goalkeeper Elliot Panicco was sharp in his final match with the team, making a career-high 10 saves.

▪ Clemson now has a 12-0-1 record when playing at home against Charlotte. The teams played once before in the NCAA tournament -- on Nov. 23, 1997, with Clemson trouncing the 49ers 5-0 in a second-round match.

▪ Also finishing his 49er career Sunday was forward Teddy Chaouche, who had a career-high seven goals this season. He finished with 22 assists, eighth on the all-time career assist list for Charlotte.