June 11, 2008

Spartanburg, S.C. - After successful stints in Mount Pleasant, Greenville, Anderson and Greer, the South Carolina North-South Soccer Classic all-star games for high school girls and boys will be played in Spartanburg at County University Soccer Stadium on the campus of USC Upstate this Saturday.

Sanctioned by the South Carolina Athletic Coaches Association (SCACA) and the South Carolina High School League (SCHSL), the North-South Soccer Classic brings together the state's elite high school soccer players for its annual all-star games. The games showcase more than 70 of the Palmetto State's top female and male graduating seniors from more than 40 high schools in the state.

The first North-South Soccer Classic game for boys was played in 1989 with the first girls match in 1996. The 2008 game marks the first time Spartanburg has hosted the event. The boys game was held in Mount Pleasant from 1989-2005. The girls game was held in Greer from 1996-98 before the sanctioning organizations decided to play the two all-star games at the same location on the same day and holding both games in Mount Pleasant until 2005. Furman University hosted the all-star games in 2006 and T.L. Hanna High School was the sight for last year's event.

The Columbia United Football Club is the primary financial sponsor of the event. Four teams, two boys and two girls, will come to Spartanburg representing upper state (north) and lower state (south) high schools. The girls game will kick things off Saturday at 12:00 noon at County University Soccer Stadium. The boys game will follow at 2:00 p.m. Please visit the South Carolina High School Soccer Coaches Association Web site at www.scsoccer.com for more information on the event, including rosters for all four teams competing in the all-star extravaganza.

County University Soccer Stadium opened in 2001 with a women's exhibition game between Upstate and South Carolina. The first regular season game at the facility saw the return of former men's coach and Upstate Athletics Hall of Famer Frank Kohlenstein to campus on Aug. 26, 2001. Current head coach and Athletics Hall of Fame member Greg Hooks led the Spartans to a 1-0 victory over Kohlenstein's Colorado School of Mines squad. The stadium, which was built in a partnership with Spartanburg County, has been the site of two NCAA Division II Tournaments in 2002 and 2003 and two Peach Belt Conference Tournament finals.