University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Kent State (NCAA 1st Round)
Carolina Field Hockey Advances To NCAA Second Round
November 11, 2000 | Field Hockey
Nov. 11, 2000
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- The third-ranked University of North Carolina field hockey team beat No. 11 Kent State 5-3 Saturday to advance to the second round of NCAA Tournament play. The Tar Heels, 18-3 on the season, will face No. 8 Massachusetts (19-3) Sunday at 2 p.m for a spot in the national semifinal game. Massachusetts advanced with a 2-1 win over Boston University in Saturday's second game.
Saturday at Francis E. Henry Stadium, UNC got on the board less than 10 minutes into the game with a goal by senior Kristen McCann. McCann's 24th goal of the season, on a penalty corner, was assisted by junior Abby Martin. With 18:58 remaining in the half, Martin assisted on another goal, this one by senior Holly Huff from the field. The Tar Heels took a 3-0 lead when Martin scored on a penalty corner, assisted by senior Jana Toepel, 3:52 before halftime.
After calling a timeout, Kent State returned to the field and 30 seconds later scored its first goal. Freshman Jennifer Melnyk brought her team within two on a field goal assisted by freshman Els Brouwer.
In the second half, Huff added to the Carolina lead with her second goal, on a penalty corner with 29:07 to play. UNC then went up 5-1 on an unassisted goal by Martin, before Kent State mounted a challenge. Brouwer scored unassisted with eight minutes remaining, then assisted freshman Arlette van Cleeff on another goal with 5:52 to play.
Kent State, which came into the contest on an 18-game winning streak, ended its season 19-4. "We had spurts of excellence on offense," Kent State coach Kerry De Vries said. "But when you play against a team like North Carolina, you can't just have spurts. They played at a pace we weren't used to. We need to continue to develop our program and get as balanced as the team we played today."
UNC and UMass have met 10 times before and the Tar Heels lead the series 7-2-1. Last season in Chapel Hill, Carolina beat the Minutewomen 4-1 on Sept. 25.
"We're very excited to have advanced," UNC coach Karen Shelton said. "I thought our team played well today, especially in the first half. UMass will pose some problems for our team and it will be important for us to maintain the same level of play that we used to beat Kent State."
Scoring summary: UNC-Kristen McCann (Abby Martin), 1st, 26:06, UNC-Holly Huff (Martin), 1st, 18:58, UNC-Martin (Jana Toepel), 1st, 3:52, KSU-Jennifer Melnyk (Els Brouwer), 1st, 3:20, UNC-Huff (McCann), 2nd, 29:07, UNC-Martin, 2nd, 26:30, KSU-Brouwer, 2nd, 8:00, KSU-Arlette van Cleeff (Brouwer), 2nd, 5:52
Shots on goal: UNC-22, KSU-11
Penalty corners: UNC-10, KSU-8
Goalkeeper saves: UNC-Amy Tran, 3, KSU-Jodi Lume, 5, Jessica Creeden, 2
