By Sean McGuffin – @SeanMCG704
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons and South Carolina Gamecocks both look to bounce back from 2-1 losses in week two of the Carolina Cup.
The two schools head into week two after nearly identical starts to the tournament. Both teams put up valiant efforts against their opposition, with Wake losing to UNC and South Carolina losing to NC State. The Gamecocks travel to Winston-Salem in need of a win, but the Demon Deacon squad is just as hungry for a victory.
South Carolina is still adjusting to play without their two leading scorers from 2025. Both Ethan Ballek and Tyler Trimnal are absent from the Spring roster. Leaving Sophomore Alejandro Velazquez-Lopez as the most productive Gamecock for the team coming into the Carolina Cup with three goals and two assists.
A big question for South Carolina in this tournament comes down to goalkeeping. Filip Versterre would start all eighteen games, with Nash Skoglund subbing in for two games. Neither of these keepers are available for the spring, leaving goaltending duties to Junior Jack Kilstrom and true Freshman Noah Scheidweiler.
Wake Forest is a team in a very similar situation, having lost multiple key players to the MLS SuperDraft. After facing a UNC team that stayed mostly the same coming into Spring, Wake looks at the match against South Carolina as a much more even opponent with just as many unknowns.
The Deacons will once again be defending their home turf at W. Dennie Spry Stadium. The same pitch that will host the Carolina Cup Final, but if either team wants to play for the tournament win, March 1 could be a do-or-die match for both Wake and South Carolina.
