A spectacular goal from striker Ally Sentnor broke a scoreless tie in the second half, and it was all the No. 1 UNC women’s soccer team needed in a 1-0 victory at No. 22 Virginia Thursday night.

The goal was one of five shots from Sentnor alone on the night. She was the only Tar Heel with multiple shots. Virginia got the better of Carolina in the first half, outshooting UNC 5-4 and forcing a diving save out of Tar Heel goalie Emmie Allen. She made another save early in the second half, and it was five minutes later that Sentnor navigated through the Cavalier defense and sent a rocket into the Virginia net.

It was Sentnor’s third goal on the season, moving her into a three-way tie for second place on the team with Evelyn Shores and Tori Dellaperuta. Avery Patterson still leads the Tar Heels with four.

Patterson and Mia Oliaro threatened to extend the UNC lead even further later in the half with shots on goal. On the other side, the Carolina defense didn’t allow a single shot on goal for the Cavaliers for the rest of the night after taking the lead.

The No. 1 Tar Heels are now 4-0-2 in six matches against ranked opponents this season, with four of those matches coming in true road environments. UNC has also now avenged 2022 losses in back-to-back matches, having defeated Virginia Tech last Friday. At 7-0-3 overall and 2-0-0 in conference play, Carolina will have an opportunity for another marquee win when it hosts No. 3 Florida State at Dorrance Field on Sunday at noon. The match will be broadcast on ESPNU.

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications/Keith Lucas

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