Nov. 14, 2007

• 2007 ACC Men's Soccer Championship
• Box Score
• Photo Gallery
• Webcast Archived on ACC Select

CARY, N.C. - The No. 1 ranked Wake Forest Demon Deacons defeated Clemson 3-1 Wednesday night in the quarterfinal round of the ACC Men's Soccer Championship at the SAS Soccer Complex in Cary, N.C. Deacons senior defender Julian Valentin scored the decisive goal for Wake Forest with a header in the game's final two minutes.

In the early stages of the game, Clemson held control of the ball, keeping the offense of the top-ranked Deacons from getting on track. "Clemson, for sure, disrupted us," said Wake Forest head coach Jay Vidovich. "They stayed very strong and played the game tremendously."

The Clemson offense could not connect on its opportunities, however, and Wake Forest would begin to assert itself on the Clemson side of the field as the half progressed. At 36:51, the Deacons would jump ahead when sophomore forward Cody Arnoux, a first-team All-ACC selection, scored on a cross from junior Evan Brown. Arnoux's goal was his thirteenth of the season. In all, only three total shots would be taken by both teams in the half.

In the second half, Clemson would tie things up with a goal in the 72nd minute. After tracking down a long pass along the sideline, Tigers senior David Bell beat his defender on the end line and played a cross in front of the goal. Junior forward Michael Brooks would direct the ball past Wake Forest keeper Brian Edwards to the far post for his fifth goal of 2007.

The teams would remain even until the 88 minute mark, when Wake Forest's Valentin put away a free kick from junior Sam Cronin to put the Demon Deacons back on top. Deacons junior Marcus Tracy would add another goal with less than one minute remaining on a cross from Arnoux to give Wake Forest the 3-1 victory.

For the match, Wake Forest posted 10 shots on goal, with eight of those coming in the second stanza. The Tigers, who fall to 7-11-1 with the loss, recorded a total of six shots, including three by sophomore Nathan Thornton.

Wake Forest will now advance to the ACC Tournament semifinals. In Friday's second semifinal, scheduled for an 8:00 p.m. start, the Deacons will take on the North Carolina Tar Heels, who upset third-seeded Duke 1-0 earlier Wednesday.

Friday's first semifinal, between top-seeded Boston College and the four-seed, Virginia Tech, will take place at 5:30 p.m. The championship game will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 18. All games are available online through ACCSelect.com, while the championship game will be nationally-televised on Fox Sports Net. The ACC men's soccer awards ceremony will be immediately following the title game.

For complete results, please visit TheACC.com and make sure to check out the 2007 ACC Men's Soccer Championship page.

Quotes

Wake Forest head coach Jay Vidovich
"I think part of it was a credit to Clemson, part of it was a negative toward our own team. We were reckless defensively. Clemson, for sure, disrupted us. (I give) a lot of credit to their game place and to their execution. Even a goal down they stayed very strong and played the game tremendously."

Clemson head coach Trevor Adair

On the game:
"I'm proud of the team, and how they played. We had a game plan and the guys executed well, got back into the game, and then the story of our season was we give the ball away, cause a foul....little simple things. But, I'm proud of the guys. I'm proud of the fact that they came in here and fought hard, never gave up on the season; it's been a difficult season. We've lost a lot of games in the last minute, and we just didn't have the depth. Wake Forest is a very good team, and I wish them the best in the ACC Tournament and the NCAAs."

On his team's goal:
"We put David Bell out on the flank and we knew if we get him exposed one-on-one, he could get around the back, and he did, and peeled the ball back nicely. That was a big goal fo us. We felt like if we stayed tight in the game we could have the chance to get one, and we did. It was a fairly even game. They had more possession, we knew that. That's the type of team they are, and it was a big goal, but then we had another let down and I'm disappointed in that."