The No. 1 UNC field hockey team passed a stiff test Wednesday afternoon in Durham, edging No. 5 seed Syracuse 2-1 in the ACC Tournament semifinals. The Tar Heels will now play for their sixth straight conference tournament title on Friday afternoon.

Carolina outshot the Orange 13-6 and never trailed in the game, though both teams went into halftime locked in a scoreless draw. It was the first time since September that the Tar Heels had been held goal-less in the first half. A pair of clutch saves on a Syracuse penalty corner kept the Orange from taking an early lead in the first quarter. Goalie Kylie Walbert and back Sietske Brüning, who was named second team All-ACC, each made a save in the sequence.

Erin Matson, playing in her final ACC Tournament, got Carolina on the board less than four minutes into the second half, converting her fifth penalty stroke of the season. Matson is 5-5 on penalty strokes in 2022, and the Tar Heels as a team are 6-6. Against the Orange on Wednesday, Matson accounted for six of the team’s 13 shots.

ACC Freshman of the Year Ryleigh Heck doubled the lead 54 seconds into the fourth quarter, scoring her 14th goal of the season on a penalty corner. Brüning picked up an assist on the play.

The Orange pulled to within 2-1 with 8:23 remaining and pulled their goalie in the final minutes, but attempted only one more shot after that. The Tar Heels were able to run out the clock and clinch their 16th consecutive win.

Carolina will now await the winner of No. 2 seed Wake Forest and No. 3 seed Virginia in the ACC Championship. The game will be played on the campus of Duke University in Durham and is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. The game will also be broadcast on ACC Network.

 

Featured image via ACC Field Hockey on Twitter

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