Charleston Knocks Off #1 South Carolina
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Stian Bendvold's brace helped College of Charleston men's soccer defeat No. 1 South Carolina, 2-1, Tuesday evening.
The Cougars beat the No. 1 team in the country for the first time in program history.
With the win, Charleston improves to 5-1-2 on the year and hands South Carolina (7-1-0) its first non-victory.
Stian Bendvold gave the Cougars a 1-0 lead against the nation's top team in the 28th minute. The junior received a pass through the Gamecock defense from Matt Lenert, took a step from the right side of the box, striking it past the keeper into the left side of the goal.
South Carolina leveled the game at one with 21 seconds remaining in the first half.
Continuing to put pressure on the Gamecock backline, Bendvold tallied his second goal of the match in the 85th minute.
Goalkeeper Martin Brink turned aside a pair of Gamecock shots on net in the victory.
Charleston is now 4-1 in its last five matches versus ranked opponents and have beaten a team in the top 25 for the third straight season. CofC beat #18 Hofstra 3-1 in 2024, #15 North Carolina 2-1 and #15 Furman 1-0 in 2025.
The Cougars continue a strong stretch of soccer when they play host to UNCW on Sunday, Sept. 27. Kickoff from Patriots Point is set for 6 p.m.
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