There was something that resembled relief about the Clemson celebrations. The Tigers worked a corner to the edge of the box, with Alvaro Gomez enjoying sufficient space to have a shot. His response was a wonderful curled strike, one that narrowly evaded South Carolina goalkeeper Ben Alexander and zipped into the top corner.

The Clemson bench exploded in delight, a jubilant reaction to its team snagging the first — and only — goal of the latest installment of the Palmetto Series. It was the first of three captivating derbies from the last week of college soccer, a trio of contests that embodied the intense, occasionally volatile nature of such games.

And though they shared animosity, all three offered their own special moments and perhaps gave some insight as to how the season might play out for the teams involved.