Field Hockey Makes The Road March To Face The Monarchs

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Carolina Field Hockey climbs back on the bus once again for a Sunday afternoon showdown with Old Dominion at the LR Hill Sports Complex in Norfolk, Va.

The sport's two most storied programs are set for their annual face off. The 20 national championships between them are only four titles shy of the rest of country combined. The Monarchs held the top spot for most of history thanks to a dominant run in the 80s and early 90s, but a three peat from 1995-97 began to turn the tide toward Carolina. The UNC title in the chaotic 2020 season tied the two teams at nine before the Heels went back to back in 2022 and 2023 to stand two clear of their historic foe.

SCHEDULE
Game 1: at Old Dominion - Sunday, October 5
Norfolk, Va. | LR Hill Sports Complex
Watch: ODUSports.com

SCOUTING REPORT
FHockey Heels vs. the Monarchs
➤ Friday's game will be the 85th all-time meeting between the two programs.
➤ Last time they met: Carolina relied heavily on their dynamic duo of Heck and Bruder to get them the win over the Monarchs last seasn. Bruder scored the first and last goals of the game to make it three straight contests with multiple scores for her. Heck claimed the game winner early in the fourth with a chip of the ODU keeper.
➤ These teams have unsurpisinlgy met on the nation's biggest stage many times. UNC won its first and fourth national championships by beating the Morachs.
➤ In the 84 games played, the two teams gave two ties all-time between the them and both came in 1993.

NUMBERS TO KNOW
4 - Carolina has 4 wins over top-15 opponents already this year, the most in the country.
5 - Ryleigh Heck scored 5 goals against Stanford, tying the UNC single-game record last hit in 2015 by Gab Major.
11 - UNC has won 11 national championships, more than any other program in the country. Old Dominion is second with nine.
373 - Katie Wimmer leads all active goalkeeper in the country with 373 career saves, 354 at Columbia and 19 now at UNC.
4.00 - Carolina's 4.00 goals per game average is the best in the ACC, with a whole 0.5 gap between them and second.

CONFERENCE CRUNCH TIME
➤ The Tar Heels split their ACC games over the weekend, dropping a tight 2-1 contest at No. 13 Wake Forest on Friday night in 2OT before bouncing back with a 2-1 win at Boston College on Sunday.
➤ Eliza Perrin's late fourth quarter score looked to have won it for the Heels in Winston-Salem, but the home team equalized and then found the net first in overtime. Both Wake goals came with UNC a woman down.
➤ Against the Eagles, Carolina had to climb back from a goal down in the fourth quarter to bring the victory home. Isabel Boere tied it before Ryleigh Heck earned a stroke that Sanne Hak put away nicely for the winner.

HECK MATCHES HISTORY
➤ The captain came to play in Carolina's conference clash against the Cardinal, scoring five times to tie the program record for goals in a game.
➤ The last Tar Heel to hit the mark was Gab Major against Virginia in 2015.
➤ One of the few scoring record Matson herself was unable to achieve, topping out at four on four different occasions.
➤ In the sport's history, only 14 people have scored more than 5 goals in a game all-time.
➤ The scoring outburst also catapulted her into the top-10 on the Carolina career goals list.

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Players Mentioned

Isabel Boere

Sanne Hak

Ryleigh Heck

Eliza Perrin

Katie Wimmer

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University of North Carolina Athletics