No. 2 seed UNC women’s soccer opened its 2024 NCAA Tournament with a win Thursday, scoring the most goals in a single match for this season and tying its tournament record for goals in the first round.

The Tar Heels ran roughshod over the USC-Upstate Spartans at Dorrance Field, earning an 8-0 victory headlined by two pairs of goals from junior Kate Faasse and freshman Linda Ullmark. It marked the highest goal total in competition for Carolina since an 8-0 win over UNLV in 2019.

Senior Bella Sember got UNC onto the scoreboard in the 18th minute, slotting home a penalty kick earned by Maddie Dahlien. Faasse’s goals followed in back-to-back fashion in the 18th and 21st minutes, the first of which was an impressive individual effort. The star attacker drove to the edge of the penalty box and buried a shot into the left netting — before quickly scoring the second off a through-ball fed past Faase’s defender by Tessa Dellarose. The brace marked Faasse’s 18th goal of the season, extending her lead within the team.

Carolina’s Olivia Thomas scored her sixth goal of the season after halftime, with the forward firing a low shot through USC-Upstate’s goalkeeper’s legs in the 60th minute. The scoring methods were diversified when freshman defender Caitlin Mara earned her first career goal as a Tar Heel, as she headed in a corner kick on the far post in the 67th.

The scoreline then turned gaudy in the span of four minutes thanks to a trio of Carolina goals. It started with a long-distance shot from freshman Bella Gaetino, who lifted the ball in a high-arching shot just over the USC-Upstate keeper’s hands and off the left post in the 74th minute. Ullmark’s strikes followed in the 76th and 78th minutes, capitalizing on a pair of Spartan mistakes — first by being unmarked in the penalty box off a cross, and secondly when collecting a dispossession earned by Alexa Wojnovich off a goal kick.

When the final buzzer sounded, UNC had outshot USC-Upstate 29-2, including 16-2 of shots on target. The win moved their record in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to 25-1 all time, and extended Carolina’s record of appearing in all 43 NCAA Tournaments.

The last time UNC scored eight goals the tournament’s opening round was in 2003, when the Tar Heels shut out High Point 8-0. Carolina would go on to win its 18th national title.

As the program seeks its elusive 22nd NCAA championship, Carolina will face Santa Clara in the second round — as well as host the second-round matchup of No. 3 seed South Carolina and No. 6 seed Minnesota. The winners of each match will play each other in Chapel Hill for the tournament’s third round. As of 11 p.m. on Friday, game times for the second round matchups had not yet been announced but they will be held the upcoming weekend (Nov. 22 – Nov. 24).

 

Featured image via Carolina Athletics Communications.

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.

Related Stories
‹
UNC Women's Soccer Beats Irish Professional Side in Dublin Exhibition
The UNC women’s soccer team got the Tar Heels’ visit to Dublin, Ireland off on the right foot. Carolina defeated Irish professional side Shelbourne F.C. 3-0 in an exhibition match at Tolka Park Friday. The match was played in conjunction with the football team’s game against TCU in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic […]
UNC Women's Soccer Suffers First Loss of 2026 vs. No. 5 Michigan State
Despite outshooting No. 5 Michigan State 21-7, UNC fell to the Spartans 3-2 Sunday at Dorrance Field. It’s Carolina’s first loss of the 2026 season. The Spartans took the lead midway through the first half on a goal by Kennedy Bell, but UNC’s Summer Denigan answered less than three minutes later to tie the score […]
UNC Soccer: Women Beat Arkansas, Men Draw at No. 5 Georgetown
Both UNC soccer teams earned quality results on the road Thursday night, as the men drew at No. 5 Georgetown and the women won 2-0 at Arkansas. On the men’s side, the Tar Heels took an early advantage in the season opener after Rutgers transfer Joschi Schelb headed in a cross from Luca Nikolai for […]
The Morning News: FDOC, Hillsborough Boil Water Advisory, UNC Women's Soccer, Bobby Petrino
In today's news: it's FDOC on the UNC campus, and a boil-water advisory remains in effect for much of Hillsborough.
UNC Women's Soccer Scores Most Goals Since 2019 in Win vs. Quinnipiac
UNC’s Bella Devey recorded a hat trick in less than 15 minutes to help the Tar Heels on their way to an 8-0 win against Quinnipiac at Dorrance Field Sunday. The eight goals are Carolina’s most in a single match since 2019. Heels are 𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 👏#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/hHYDCWkCjK — UNC Women's Soccer (@uncwomenssoccer) August […]
The Morning News: Mark Chilton Retiring, UNC Returning
In today's news: longtime Orange County Register of Deeds Mark Chilton announces he's stepping down, a few months before the end of his term.
UNC Women's Soccer Beats Fairfield in 2026 Season Opener
Sophomore defender Hope Munson bagged the first two goals of her collegiate career in the first half as UNC defeated Fairfield 4-0 at Dorrance Field in the 2026 season opener Thursday night. Game 𝙒𝙊𝙉 😏#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/VWOUvguLeH — UNC Women's Soccer (@uncwomenssoccer) August 14, 2026 Munson collected her brace in just over a half […]
The Morning News: Legion Road, ArtsOrange, Jason Johnson, Bill Belichick
In today's news: Chapel Hill provides an update on the future of its 36-acre property on Legion Road, with a pond slated for removal.
UNC Women's Soccer Picked 5th in ACC; Bella Devey Named Preseason All-ACC
UNC has been picked to finish fifth in the ACC’s preseason women’s soccer poll, which was released Monday. The Tar Heels were one of five teams to receive at least one first-place vote. Notre Dame sits in first place in the poll with seven of 17 first-place votes, while No. 2 Stanford, No. 3 Duke […]
UNC Women's Soccer Releases 2026 Regular Season Schedule
The UNC women’s soccer program released its schedule for the 2026 regular season Monday, which includes matches across seven states and two countries. Mark your calendars, the 2026 schedule is here 👏 Ticket information coming soon!#GoHeels pic.twitter.com/D0FR4zWhkb — UNC Women's Soccer (@uncwomenssoccer) July 20, 2026 UNC begins with a preseason exhibition against South Carolina at […]
›