Field Hockey Heels To Host Hoos On ACC Network

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Carolina field hockey will face off with its first ACC foe of the season when they welcome Virginia to Karen Shelton Stadium on Sunday afternoon. It is the final game of the opening stretch of the season before Erin Matson and co. spend almost a month away from home.

The game will be aired on ACC Network, the second of four linear TV games for Carolina in 2027. The Heels are scheduled for more TV appearances than anyone else in the conference. UNC enters their ACC slate having won nine straight championships in the nation's best conference for field hockey. The team is 20-2 in regular season league games under Matson, going 7-1 last year.

SCHEDULE
#9 Virginia- Sunday, September 20 – 12:00 PM ET – ACC Network – Live Stats

#11 North Carolina Tar Heels (3-3)(0-0 ACC)
Head Coach: Erin Matson
Record at UNC: 62-9
Record vs. Virginia: 3-1

#9 Virginia Cavaliers (4-2)(0-1 ACC)
Head Coach: Ole Keusgen
Record at Virginia: 38-12
Record vs. UNC: 1-3

SERIES HISTORY
All-Time: UNC 69-18 (87)
Current Streak: W5
Chapel Hill: 30-5
Away: 27-8
Neutral Site: 11-5
First Meeting: Oct. 22, 1976

NUMBERS TO KNOW
76 - Carolina has won 76 games in their provincial palace Karen Shelton Stadium, holding a .938 winning percentage in 81 games.
17 - UNC has a 17-1 (.944) record in linear TV games under Matson.
15 - Merritt Skubisz made 15 saves in the game against Old Dominion. It was a career high and the most for a UNC keeper in at least the last 20 years.
13 - 13 players from both of these teams graduated from the same high schools.
3 - Ella Barbacci has scored three goals so far this season. She had just one in her three pervious seasons combined.

HEELS SPLIT FINAL WEEKEND BEFORE CONFERENCE PLAY
➤ The Heels lost a tough one 5-4 in overtime against No. 20 Old Dominion on Friday night in Chapel Hill.
➤ Carolina had a three goal lead on two different occasions before ODU tied it up in the fourth quarter.
➤ Ella Barbacci logged her first ever multi-goal game and Merritt Skubisz set a career-high with 15 saves.
➤ It was UNC's first loss at home since Oct. 10 in Matson's first season, a 2-1 OT defeat against Liberty.
➤ Sunday saw Carolina hit the road for their first true road game of the season when they faced Richmond. The Heels came away with a 2-1 win over the Spiders thanks to another productive day from Barbacci.
➤ The Harvey's Lake, Pa., native continued her good weekend with a goal and an assist against Richmond.

HISTORY VS. THE CAVALIERS
➤ Sunday's game will be the 88th all-time meeting between the two programs.
➤ In the regular season, Carolina holds a 51-11 record against the Cavaliers.
➤ The two have played every single year, often multiple times, since 1976. It was the third season in UNC's program history. Virginia won the first eight matchups and have only claimed victory 10 times since 1981.
➤ Last time they met: A dominant 4-1 victory secured North Carolina its ninth straight ACC Championship and the 28th in program history. Two goals from tournament MVP and Virginia transfer Dani Mendez led the way for UNC to once again assert itself as the dominant force in the conference.
➤ Two early goals from Mendez followed by strikes from Charly Bruder and Reese Anetsberger to extend the stranglehold on the ACC trophy.
➤ Virginia's Cassidy Thibodeau spent three seasons as a member of the Tar Heels squad, appearing in 10 games as a member of two national championship teams.

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Players Mentioned

Reese Anetsberger

Ella Barbacci

Charly Bruder

Dani Mendez

Merritt Skubisz

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