Two overtimes weren’t enough to decide Friday’s NCAA field hockey Semifinal in Louisville between UNC and top-ranked UCONN, as the Tar Heels tied the game at 1-1 late in regulation before ultimately falling to the Huskies in a penalty shootout.

Much like in the overtime periods, neither team could break through on offense in the first half.

UCONN (22-0) struck first after the halftime break when Charlotte Veitner took advantage of a penalty corner in the 41st minute to net her 32nd goal of the season.

In a game where the Huskies’ goalie, Nina Klein, made a career-high 13 saves, Veitner’s goal could very well have gone down as the game-winner.

UNC junior Eva Van’t Hoog had other ideas, however, as she took a pass from teammate Gab Major on a penalty corner and promptly found some empty space on the right side behind Klein in goal.

The goal rewarded head coach Karen Shelton’s decision to pull goalie Amanda Hendry in favor of an extra attacker, and extended the Tar Heels’ season.

Despite recording 20 total shots in the game–compared to just six for the Huskies–the Tar Heels (18-5) were done in by spectacular goalkeeping down the stretch.

“Pulling the keeper is never a comfortable thing to do but we did it and it worked to get the tying goal and force the overtime,” Shelton said. “I was happy about that, and then I thought we controlled large portions of the overtime but couldn’t find a way to score a goal, thanks to Nina Klein – she had an outstanding performance today.”

After the two 15-minute overtime periods came and went without any scoring, the penalty shootout gave Klein yet another chance to demonstrate her prowess in goal.

UCONN put all three of its attempts past Hendry on one side, while Klein made saves on all three of UNC’s shots to ice the victory and advance the Huskies to the NCAA Championship Game.

 

Looking Forward:

The future appears bright in Chapel Hill, as UNC had only one senior–co-captain Gab Major–on its entire roster this season.

 

 

Photo via Jeffrey A. Camarati  (UNC Athletics)

Related Stories
‹
Field Hockey: No. 1 Tar Heels Remain Undefeated With Victory Over Defending National Champion UCONN
At this point, it’s unclear if there’s anyone capable of getting in the way of the top-ranked UNC field hockey team. The Tar Heels passed arguably their toughest test of the season on Sunday in Newton, Massachusetts, defeating the defending national champion Connecticut Huskies–the nation’s No. 5 team, and the preseason No. 1–by a score […]
UNC Field Hockey Defeats UCONN in OT Thriller, Moves on to NCAA Finals
Making their eighth straight appearance in the Field Hockey Final Four, No. 4 UNC showed it has much bigger goals on Friday than just sticking to the normal routine. Playing in Norfolk, Virginia, the Tar Heels received an overtime goal from star forward Lauren Moyer to defeat the No. 6 UCONN Huskies 2-1 and officially […]
Erin Matson Wins Second Consecutive Honda Sport Award for Field Hockey
UNC junior forward Erin Matson earned her second consecutive Honda Sport Award for field hockey on Wednesday, an honor which recognizes the top women’s athletes in the country across 12 different NCAA sports. Matson led the Tar Heels to their third consecutive national championship last month, scoring the overtime game-winner against Michigan in the title […]
UNC Field Hockey Earns Top Overall Seed for NCAA Tournament
The UNC field hockey team once again finds itself in a familiar place, as the Tar Heels were named the top overall seed for the upcoming NCAA Tournament for the third year in a row. This year’s tournament will feature just 12 teams due to the pandemic, which also forced the event to be played […]
Matson Earns Third Straight ACC Field Hockey Player of the Year Award
For the third consecutive season, the ACC selected UNC junior forward Erin Matson as the ACC Field Hockey Offensive Player of the Year. Announced as the winner on Thursday, Matson led the ACC this season with 56 points, scoring 24 goals and dishing out eight assists. She becomes the just the second field hockey athlete […]
No. 1 UNC Field Hockey Earns OT Road Victory at No. 12 Virginia
Erin Matson scored all three of UNC’s goals on Friday in Charlottesville, including the game-winner in overtime, as the top-ranked Tar Heel field hockey team dispatched No. 12 Virginia 3-2. Each of Matson’s first two goals came during the second quarter, giving UNC (14-1, 4-0 ACC) a 2-0 lead heading into halftime. Virginia (6-11, 1-4 […]
No. 1 UNC Field Hockey Downs No. 15 Duke in Double Overtime on Senior Day
Bryn Boylan scored on a penalty stroke in the second overtime on Friday at Karen Shelton Stadium, giving the top-ranked UNC field hockey team a 4-3 Senior Day victory over the No. 15 Duke Blue Devils. This was the third meeting of the season between the Tar Heels (13-1) and Blue Devils (3-11), and the […]
UNC Field Hockey Blanks Wake Forest for Second Spring Shutout
Erin Matson scored twice on Saturday in Winston-Salem, guiding the UNC field hockey team to a 2-0 victory over Wake Forest. This marks the second consecutive 2-0 win for the Tar Heels (11-1) to begin the spring season, after dispatching Louisville by the same score last weekend. Each of Matson’s goals came within the first […]
Field Hockey: UNC Begins Spring Season With Shutout Win Over Louisville
Erin Matson scored twice on Friday at Karen Shelton Stadium to lead the UNC field hockey team to a 2-0 victory over Louisville in the first game of the spring season. Senior Amanda Hendry made eight saves to complete the shutout in goal, as the Tar Heels picked up right where they left off in […]
UNC to Host 2020 NCAA Field Hockey Tournament
The NCAA announced Wednesday that UNC’s Karen Shelton Stadium will be the host of the 2020 NCAA Field Hockey Tournament, which is set to take place in May of 2021. Old Dominion University was the originally scheduled host of the event, but was unable to do so once the event was delayed from fall to […]
›