Weekly Recap - September 21 - 27

What a great week to be a Buccaneer. Despite a slow mid-week slate, things definitely picked up with four teams in action Saturday, and a fifth on Sunday to finish out the week. Hopefully you all made it out to the first home football game. If not, you have another chance this weekend as the Bucs stay home to face Savannah State in their final non-conference game of the season.

Plenty of competition for CSU Athlete of the Week this week, but it was Gerald Stevenson’s 200 yards of offense that pushed him over the edge. Stevenson had 86 yards on the ground, including 56 on one carry, the second-longest touchdown play of the season for CSU after Kwame Krakue scored on a 62-yard touchdown pass earlier in the game.

Stevenson also caught eight passes for 114 yards, both season-highs for 2009. He had a 20-yard reception down the left sideline that set up the 62-yard touchdown pass on the opposite sideline on the very next play.

Also considered for the honor: Marky Boyce (Soccer), Amanda Hill (Volleyball ) Amberle Trinder (Volleyball), Andrew King (Men’s XC), Chris Patrick (Football), John Paglia (Football).



Sept. 22 – Volleyball @ College of Charleston – W 3-1
With their first victory over CofC since 2000 (granted they didn’t play for a few years in there), the volleyball team earned the unofficial “City Champion” title, having already beaten The Citadel twice this year. It took a comeback to do it after dropping set one 25-23, but the Lady Bucs showed a lot of heart on the road as they came back to take a 2-1 lead. Facing set point for CofC in set four, CSU rattled off three-straight points to reverse a 23-24 deficit to a 26-24 victory, clinching the match.

“That was such a great comeback,” said Head Coach Danyel Bellush. “They showed me a lot about their commitment and their heart tonight. I’m really impressed with my team right now.”

Game Story
Box Score

Sept. 22 – Soccer @ College of Charleston – L, 3-0
At the exact same time that the volleyball team was overcoming a huge obstacle downtown against CofC, the soccer team was trying to do the same on Patriots Point. The soccer team has tied the College of Charleston four times since 2001, but failed to overcome them, and unfortunately for CSU, the trend continues. For the third-straight game, the Lady Bucs gave up an early goal in the first five minutes, forcing them to play catch up the rest of the time. A forced offense led to a transition goal to make it 2-0 and CofC would tack on one more in the final three minutes of the game. With only 8 shots, it was the first time CSU has been outshot and the first time they have been shut out all season.

Game Story
Box Score


Sept. 26 - Cross Country @ The Citadel Invite – M – 4th, W – 5th
Both cross country teams benefited from staying close to home as the women’s team shaved off more than a minute from their average time a year ago at the same meet. The men’s team put five runners under 30 minutes, when their team average last year was 30:16.50, almost two full minutes slower than the 2009 average of 28:22. Andrew King led the majority of the race for the men, finishing as the runner-up, while Adrienne Cuff finished 15th, the first top-20 finish of her career.

Men's Story
Men’s Results

Women's Story
Women’s Results


Sept. 26 – Football vs. North Greenville – W, 34-0
The score could have been a lot more lopsided if you look at the statistical domination for Charleston Southern. With 10 possessions, CSU never punted the football, scoring on six of those drives. The defense allowed just 90 total yards, 20 of which came on a fake punt, while the offense combined for 516 total yards. The Bucs rushed for 267 yards, the most since garnering 272 against Savannah State in 2007.

Coach Mills saw the breaking running game coming: “Our ground attack has really been improving, and we felt like once we got on a more level playing field that those improvements would show up.”

Chris Patrick had a career game with a career-high nine tackles, a sack and a forced fumble, the first of his career, and the defense never let NGU inside the 35 yardline.

Game Story
Box Score
Postgame Quotes

Sept. 26 – Volleyball vs. Presbyterian – W, 3-0
A lot of times when a team comes off a big victory, they suffer a letdown (see any number of top-5 football teams this year). This was definitely not the case with the volleyball team as they opened with a sweep over Presbyterian College. In fact, the first set was the most dominant as CSU hit .346 as a team and won 25-16. The final two sets were closer, but CSU was able to easily put away PC. It took a total team effort, though, as everyone seemed to do their part and do it well. Amanda Hill had a double-double after two sets, finishing with 14 kills and 14 digs, while Tricia Rodl had 13 digs and Sam Sasan had 26 assists. Amberle Trinder was all over the place defensively with nine block assists.

Game Story
Box Score

Sept. 27 – Soccer @ Francis Marion – W, 3-2
Michelle Dennis and Marky Boyce combined for all three CSU goals as they stole a win on the road, Sunday. In their final non-conference matchup, CSU was the one that struck early, scoring in the fourth minute to take a 1-0 lead. No more than eight minutes later, Boyce notched a goal off a pass from Lindsey Trexler. After taking a 3-0 lead in the second half, FMU responded with a couple of long goals off loose balls to make things interesting.

Game Story
Box Score

What’s Coming Up?
Tuesday, Sept. 29 – Volleyball vs. Winthrop (Live Stats, Live Video) – 6 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 2 – Cross Country @ Charlotte Invitational
Friday, Oct. 2 – Volleyball @ UNC Asheville - 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 3 – Soccer @ Liberty – 1 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 3 – Football vs. Savannah State (Live Stats, Live Video, Game Notes) – 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 3 – Volleyball @ Gardner-Webb – 2 p.m.

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