Carolina Shuts Out Virginia For Spot In Title Game

Friday, November 3

12:00 PM

North Carolina

(15-4)

Virginia (ACC Championship Semifinals)

(15-4)

North Carolina

Virginia

Photo by: ACC

November 3, 2017 | Field Hockey

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By: UNC Athletic Communications

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Fifth-seeded North Carolina used a team effort on both ends of the turf Friday to shut out top-seeded Virginia 4-0 and earn a spot in Sunday's Atlantic Coast Conference Field Hockey Championship title game. The Tar Heels (15-4) got goals from four different players – with no overlap to the three different players who scored in Thursday's 3-2 quarterfinals win over Wake Forest – and earned their sixth shutout of the season, playing against one of the nation's top offenses.

"I'm so proud of the Tar Heels," said UNC coach Karen Shelton, who has coached UNC to 19 ACC titles during her 37 seasons at the program's helm. "This was a great team effort today, playing against an exceptional and very talented Virginia squad. We played hard and tough yesterday against Wake Forest and then turned it around quickly for today's game."

UNC will play in the title game for the third year in a row and the 24th time in the 35-year history of the event. The Tar Heels last won the ACC crown in 2015. A season ago, they finished as runner-up to Virginia, which this year leads the ACC in every offensive category. The Cavaliers (15-4) have lost to an ACC team just twice this fall, and both times that team was UNC. The Tar Heels won by the same score in the teams' regular-season meeting on Oct. 6 in Charlottesville, Va.

Virginia's total of 19 shots was by far the highest by an opponent this season, and marked just the second time this fall that UNC has been out-shot. (The other time was at Syracuse, when the Orange had 13 shots in an overtime win by Carolina.) In response, UNC goalkeeper Amanda Hendry, a redshirt freshman, made a career-high 10 saves and the Tar Heels withstood 10 corner attempts by Virginia. Attesting to the defense-by-committee approach, UNC also had a season-high three defensive saves, one each by juniors Morgan Goetz and Eva van't Hoog and freshman Cassie Sumfest, who got one for the second day in a row.

"I thought Amanda Hendry was really strong, for us and anchored a great defense," Shelton said. "UVa put long periods of extended pressure on us and we didn't crack. I thought everybody worked as hard as they possibly could."

Sophomore Eef Andriessen scored the gamewinner 15 minutes into the action. After Virginia keeper Carrera Lucas saved the initial shot on a UNC corner, the ball popped out to mid-circle where Andriessen gathered it and blasted a shot past Lucas to put UNC up 1-0.

The Tar Heels added another in the 24th minute when junior Malin Evert shot just inside the right post from the left side of the cage.

In the 49th minute, sophomore Marissa Creatore made a long run down the right side of the field and dished the ball off to sophomore Feline Guenther, who sent it back to Creatore in the middle of the circle. Creatore passed it left, where freshman Meredith Sholder grabbed it and sent a close-range shot past Lucas to make the score 3-0.

In the 56th minute, Creatore, playing with eight stitches in her forehead after taking a ball to the head in Thursday's game, earned her second assist of the day. She carried the ball into the circle from the right baseline and sent a pass across the face of the cage to sophomore Catherine Hayden near the left post. Hayden shot it in for her eighth goal of the season.

UNC finished with 14 shots, 10 of them in the first half. Virginia had 19, 14 of them in the second half. The Cavaliers drew 10 corners, a season-high for an opponent. Carolina had just four, only one of those coming in the second half.

In the title game, Carolina will face the winner of the day's second semifinal between Louisville and Duke., both teams the Tar Heels lost to during the regular season. They'll be ready for either on Sunday and already feeling like they've benefited from the experience gained on Thursday and Friday.

"You can't lose in this game," Shelton said of the semifinal matchup. "The hard work back-to-back helps prepare us for the NCAA Tournament. So all we wanted to do was really work our tails off the entire time, and certainly we did that. To get the result is even sweeter."

No. 6 UNC 4, No. 4 Virginia 0
Scoring: UNC – Eef Andriessen, 15:04; UNC – Malin Evert. 23:37; UNC – Meredith Sholder (Marissa Creatore), 48:39; UNC – Catherine Hayden (Creatore), 55:20
Shots: UNC 14 (10/4), UVA 19 (5/14)
Penalty corners: UNC 4 (3/1), UVA 10 (4/6)
Goalkeeper saves: UNC 10 (Amanda Hendry, 70:00, 10 saves, 0 goals allowed); UVA 9 (Carrera Lucas, 55:20, 8 saves, 4 goals allowed; Lauren Hausheer, 14:40, 1 save, 0 goals allowed)
Defensive saves: UNC 3 (Cassie Sumfest 1, Eva van't Hoog 1, Morgan Goetz 1)
Records: UNC 15-4, UVa 15-4

UNC starters: Amanda Hendry, Eef Andriessen, Cassie Sumfest, Ashley Hoffman, Feline Guenther, Malin Evert, Morgan Goetz, Eva Smolenaars, Eva van't Hoog, Gab Major, Marissa Creatore
UNC subs: Meredith Sholder, Bryn Boylan, Catherine Hayden, Megan DuVernois, Courtnie Williamson