The No. 3 UNC men’s soccer team equalized late in its NCAA Tournament Round of 16 match against No. 14 Hofstra on Sunday, played through two scoreless overtimes and then won in a penalty shootout to advance to the national quarterfinals.

A flurry of goals in the first half saw Hofstra take the lead, Ahmad Al-Qaq equalize for Carolina and Hofstra take the lead again in the span of less than 10 minutes. It’s the first time Carolina has allowed multiple goals in a match this season.

The score would stay 2-1 in favor of the Pride into halftime and all the way into the waning moments of regulation. The Tar Heels created multiple chances in the second half, including a pair of shots which rang off the Hofstra woodwork, but were still stuck at just one shot on goal (Al-Qaq’s goal in the first half) on the night.

Finally, it was Martin Vician who connected with a set piece service from Quenzi Huerman in the 86th minute, tying the match at 2-2. Vician had an opportunity to steal a win late in normal time on a breakaway, but his shot was blocked before it could reach the Hofstra keeper.

Neither team created a shot on goal in the two 10-minute overtime periods, sending the match to a penalty shootout. It was Carolina’s second shootout of the season, after losing in penalties to Clemson in the ACC Championship.

Fortunately for UNC, this one ended on a positive note. Keeper Andrew Cordes stopped the Pride’s second penalty, and all five Tar Heels found the back of the net. Andrew Czech calmly slotted home the fifth and winning penalty to send Carolina through. Ironically, UNC ended the night with only two shots on goal – the goals from Al-Qaq and Vician.

The Tar Heels will appear in the national quarterfinals for the first time since the 2020-21 season. No. 3 overall seed UNC will host Oregon State, which upset No. 6 overall seed SMU in the Round of 16 by a 7-1 final score. The winner will advance to the College Cup in Louisville in December. The match is scheduled for Saturday at 5 p.m. at Dorrance Field.

 

Featured image via UNC Men’s Soccer on Twitter

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