University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Navy
Tar Heels Defeat Navy, 6-1
October 8, 2002 | Men's Soccer
Oct. 8, 2002
CHAPEL HILL --The University of North Carolina men's soccer team scored four first-half goals and cruised past Navy, 6-1, on Tuesday night at Fetzer Field. The six goals were one off the season-high seven for the Tar Heels, set against Campbell on Sept. 24. With the win, Carolina improved to 8-4 this season. Navy fell to 4-8-2.
The Tar Heels got two goals from Ryan Kneipper and three assists from Matt Crawford, who now has an ACC-leading 10 assists this season.
UNC head coach Elmar Bolowich, now in his 14th year as the head coach in Chapel Hill, has 170 career victories. He needs two wins to tie Anson Dorrance for second place on the school's all-time coaching victory list. Bolowich needs four wins to tie Marvin Allen for first place in UNC history with 174 victories.
Carolina scored its first goal less than 13 minutes into the match as Kneipper scored from point-blank range at the right front of the net at the 12:33 mark. Kneipper was assisted by Crawford and Mike Gell, who worked a pretty give-and-go on the left flank leading to the goal. Crawford took a one-touch pass from Gell, took a few dribbles down the left sideline, and crossed it across the Navy goal, leaving Kneipper with an easy goal, his eighth of the season.
Logan Pause gave the Tar Heels a 2-0 lead less than five minutes later, scoring on a header off a free kick from Crawford at the 16:02 mark. Kneipper scored again less than four minutes later, heading the ball in off Crawford's third assist of the first half at the 19:49 mark. Carolina made it 4-0 at the half when Dixon Soffe scored his first collegiate goal, taking assists from Sean McGinty and Peter Gajdos to score at the 42:19 mark. The Tar Heels outshot the Midshipmen, 13-1, in the first half.
Nine minutes into the second half, Tim Merritt made it 5-0 Carolina when he scored on a penalty kick at the 53:08 mark. Navy cut it to 5-1 when Craig Ruhs scored off a rebound of a Jamie Coyle shot, lifting a shot over the outstretched hands of UNC backup goalkeeper Jay Batt, who entered the game at the start of the second half. Marcus Storey pushed the lead back to five goals, scoring off assists from Kneipper and McGinty at the 60:21 mark for the final margin of 6-1.
Carolina will return to action on Saturday at 7 p.m. with a road game at Virginia Commonwealth.
