Field Hockey National Championships
November 19, 2002 | Field Hockey
1989 Field Hockey National Championship Team
After waiting through eight consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, seven consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference championships and two straight trips to the final four, it's almost no surprise the 1989 University of North Carolina Field Hockey team took 100 minutes of playing time, three overtimes and penalty strokes to capture the program's first national championship.
The initial title in the storied Tar Heel program came against Old Dominion, a 2-1 marathon victory in Springfield, Massachusetts. Carolina scored first when junior Peggy Anthon, one of four Tar Heels to be named to the all tournament team, broke the scoreless tie with 10:56 remaining. Old Dominion came back to tie the score with just over six minutes to play.
The one all tie lasted through three overtimes, the last two of which were played under sudden death rules, setting up the first ever game in NCAA tournament play where penalty strokes were required to decide the championship. Leading two scores to one, Tar Heel goalie Evelien Spee clinched the victory and championship for the Heels by scoring on Carolina's fifth and final attempt. The score ended the game a full three hours and 41 minutes after the opening whistle.
The win capped a 20-2 season that included an undefeated ACC season, in addition to a seventh ACC tournament championship. Old Dominion's only two blemishes on the season were both to the Heels, who bested the Monarchs 5-2 during the regular season in Chapel Hill.
North Carolina Head Coach Karen Shelton said that she suspected this team possessed something special. "We had more talent on previous teams, but this squad is the most cohesive," she said. "You put all that together and you win a national championship." Shelton was named to the Tar Heel coaching position in 1981, and had been named ACC coach of the year in the previous three seasons as well as the 1989 campaign.
1995 Field Hockey National Championship Team
The University of North Carolina field hockey team completed the finest season in Tar Heel history in 1995, capturing the program's first national championship since 1989 with an overpowering 5-1 victory over the University of Maryland in Winston-Salem, N.C. The victory capped a dominant season that saw Carolina go 24-0, 8-0 in the ACC.
Maryland had been a familiar opponent during the 1995 campaign, as the two teams faced off four times throughout the season. The first three meetings went down to the wire, with Carolina prevailing in overtime in each. But in front of a partisan crowd of over 3,000, the Tar Heels proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were the nations number one team.
Using an outstanding penalty corner and a superb second half performance Carolina rolled their way to a four goal victory. Susannah Schott led the way with a hat trick, with the team's lone senior, captain Kim Schroll, adding four assists. The two were joined on the all tournament team by Nancy Pelligreen, Kate Barber, Christy Utter and Jana Withrow.
The Heels reached the final after dismissing Princeton at home in Chapel Hill, shutting the Tigers out 6-0. The win put Carolina in its seventh consecutive national final four. The semifinals saw UNC knock out the team that had defeated them in the previous year's final, James Madison. The Dukes defeated Carolina 2-1 in penalty strokes for the 1994 crown, but in 1995 the Tar Heels exacted their revenge with a 3-0 victory.
The 24 win season broke several records, surpassing the school and ACC records for consecutive victories. The perfect season also served to highlight many long standing Carolina streaks. It was Carolina's third straight appearance in the championship game, and its seventh consecutive trip to the national semifinals. The Tar Heels were also making their 13 consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament.
1996 Field Hockey National Championship Team
The 1996 version of Tar Heel field hockey team entered the season with great expectations. The team had lost only one senior off of a dominant, undefeated national championship squad that ripped through the NCAA tournament the previous year, yielding only one goal on their miraculous run. When the dust cleared on the 1996 season the Heels had met every expectation, capturing their second consecutive NCAA crown with a 3-0 victory over Princeton.
Carolina welcomed back Cindy Werley in 1996, the junior had missed the previous year's championship run while playing for the United States in the Olympics. With Werley back in the fold Carolina would start the year in style, winning their first five games by a total of 26-0. The fifth consecutive shutout victory was a 4-0 statement against then number one ranked Virginia.
The Tar Heels would lose the next day 3-2 in double overtime to Old Dominion, a heated rival against whom Carolina had played many classic contests, including three NCAA finals. The loss would be Carolina's only blemish on the season, as the Tar Heels won their next 18 games on their way to the program's third NCAA title.
The championship game pitted the upstart Princeton Tigers against the Heels, Princeton having upset ODU to prevent a third contest on the year between the two schools. The Tar Heels dominated play throughout the contest, as the Carolina attack powered its way to a 3-0 victory. The scoring opened when Susannah Schott blasted home one of her patented penalty corners. The Heels never looked back, scoring two more goals, the first by Nancy Pelligreen and the second by Ashley Hanson to cap the victory.
The title game performance was led by Werley, who ended the season as not just the ACC player of the year, but the nation's most outstanding player by virtue of winning the Honda award. The junior played big for the Heels all season, including an amazing ACC tournament final win over Duke that saw her score three goals in the second half to bring Carolina back after a 2-0 halftime deficit for a stirring 3-2 win.
The UNC team of 1996 was truly the best of the best. Fifteen of the teams 23 victories came against ranked opponents, including five wins over top ten programs. The Heels outscored opponents 101-21 on the year, giving up more than two goals in a single game only once all season.
1997 Field Hockey National Championship Team
After winning back to back championships in the previous two seasons the Carolina Field Hockey program was in a position to call itself a true dynasty. The 1997 national championship edition of the Tar Heels cemented that fact by defeating Old Dominion for the championship, the 43rd meeting between the two perennial Field Hockey powers.
The game was the third meeting on the season between the two teams, with each team owning a one-goal victory on the other team's home field. The final began with ODU taking a 1-0 lead. Senior Cindy Werley even the score, and junior Nancy Pelligreen added a goal before halftime to give the Tar Heels a 2-1 lead heading into halftime.
In the second half Carolina recorded the last of three unanswered goals when Joy Driscoll scored to give Carolina a 3-1 lead. Old Dominion would score once more in an attempted comeback, but the Heels would hold on to win their third consecutive NCAA championship 3-2.
The victory over Old Dominion was only one of two close games UNC would have to play in the final four, held in Storrs, Connecticut. After rolling to a 4-0 win over Connecticut in Chapel Hill on the strength of two Pelligreen goals as well as Werley's record setting 82 tally, Carolina headed to the final four to face Princeton, the team they had defeated in the Championship in 1996. The Tigers took Carolina to the limit before finally succumbing to the Heels 4-3 on a goal by freshman Kristen McCann.
Carolina entered the NCAA tournament as the ACC Champion and the number one ranked team in the country. For the season Carolina would go 20-3, with two losses to Virginia in addition to the Old Dominion loss.
The Cavaliers beat UNC by scores of 2-0 and 2-1, but Carolina won the most important meeting between the two schools, winning the ACC tournament title game 2-0. At the time of the meeting Virginia was the top ranked team in the nation, and Carolina was forced to play without senior Jennifer DiCullo, who had broken her right thumb in the semifinals the day before. With DiCullo's number 15 affixed to their sticks, the Tar Heels toppled UVA, with the freshman McCann scoring both goals.
Cindy Werley's 36 goals during the Heels 23 game season set a single season goal scoring mark for Carolina. She would be named ACC tournament MVP as well as ACC Player of the Year. Werley's 212 points throughout her career still stand as a Carolina record, and her 44 assists are second only to teammate Joy Driscoll, who amassed an astounding 58. The 1997 squad had three first team All America selections, with seniors Werley, Kate Barber and Jana Withrow all receiving the honor.