No. 1/1 Vanderbilt (15-0-1, 8-0-1 SEC) vs. No. 10/15 South Carolina (12-1-3, 6-0-3 SEC)
Sunday, Nov. 1 • 12 p.m. CT
Vanderbilt Soccer Complex • Nashville, Tenn.
ESPN+ • Live Stats • Game Notes
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- No. 1/1 Vanderbilt hosts No. 10/15 South Carolina on Sunday at noon to conclude the regular season.
Despite being a battle between the top-two teams in the SEC, it holds very little weight with regard to the conference table. The Commodores clinched the title last Friday, and both teams have secured a bye into the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.
The Opponent
- The Gamecocks have had another remarkable season, with their only loss coming at Wake Forest, who is currently ranked fourth nationally.
- They finished their home slate with a perfect 9-0 record, but are 3-1-3 away from home.
Scouting Report
- South Carolina has a balanced attack, with 10 players scoring multiple goals. Sydney Middaugh leads the way with five goals and two assists.
- Goalkeeper Christina Tsaousis leads the conference with a .870 save percentage and is second in goals-against average (0.47) and shutouts (nine).
Series History
- Vanderbilt holds a 15-10-8 advantage in the all-time series but is searching for just it’s fourth win in the last 18 matches against one of the SEC’s proudest moments. All three wins in that span came on the road; the last Vandy win at home was in 2008.
- Last season, the No. 10 Dores wrapped up the regular season with a 1-0 win in Columbia.
Record Ranking
- Vanderbilt is No. 1 in both polls, just the second unanimous top team this season (Stanford, Aug. 31).
- They have been ranked No. 1 in seven of the last eight TDS polls and reached the top spot for the first time in the USC poll on Oct. 20.
- The Commodores are the first team on campus to be ranked No. 1 in a national poll since bowling received the top ranking in December 2024.
- They join bowling, baseball, women’s basketball, women’s tennis, and men’s and women’s golf as programs to receive the No. 1 ranking.
Champions Again
- Vanderbilt clinched the SEC regular season title on Oct. 23 with a 5-0 victory over Texas.
- It’s the program’s first regular season title since 2018, its eighth overall and fourth under Darren Ambrose.
History Beckons
- The Dores are one result away from finishing the regular season undefeated for the first time in program history. It would also be their 17th game unbeaten, which would break a record set in 2018.
- Only one SEC team (South Carolina, 2016) has ever finished a regular season undefeated since the conference started in 1993.
Pacing the Nation
- Vanderbilt is second in the country in goals per game (3.38), first in assists (3.50) and second in points (10.25).
- They are one of two schools without a loss in 2026, and the only P4 squad. They lead the country with a winning percentage of .997, .063 points higher than second-place Ohio State.
Sydney’s Scoring Surge
- Even by her lofty standards, senior forward Sydney Watts is on a production heater to start 2026.
- With 15 goals and five assists in 16 games, the All-American ranks fourth nationally with 35 points.
- She is second in program history and sixth among active D-I players with 40 career goals. She set a program record by scoring in seven consecutive games to open the season.
Chasing History
- This Vandy attack is in the running to be among the best in program history, with 54 goals through 16 games.
- Their biggest competition is the 1994 squad, which went 18-5 and scored a school-record 77 goals en route to an SEC regular season and tournament title. Through 16 games, they had 51 goals.
- The Dores’ next win will be their 16th, tied for the fourth-most in school history and second-most in the Ambrose era.
Best of the Best
- The win at No. 8 Alabama on Oct. 18 was the 11th win in 14 top-25 battles Vanderbilt has played since the 2025 season. It was also the highest-ranked road win since beating South Carolina in 2015.
- The Dores went 4-2 in top-25 regular season battles in 2025, won three more en route to the SEC Tournament title and went 2-1 against ranked competition in the NCAA Tournament.
- At home, they are 7-1 in top-25 matchups.
Protecting The Plex
- The Dores went 11-1-1 at home last season and are 9-0 at home in 2026.
- Since 2022, they are 42-5-8 at home.