A pair of goals for forwards Luke Hille and Martin Vician helped propel No. 7 UNC men’s soccer to its eighth win on the season Tuesday night, as the Tar Heels beat William & Mary 5-2 in Williamsburg.

Hille opened Carolina’s scoring just five minutes into the match, collecting a deflected cross before shooting a left-footed shot low into the bottom-right corner of the net. Despite near-missed from the Tribe, UNC’s lead was doubled in the 21st minute off another shot from the Cary native. Hille dribbled down the left flank and into William & Mary’s box, firing a shot at goalkeeper Ryan Eapen — who had the ball slip through his hands and between his legs before rolling past the goal line. The scores marked Hille’s fifth and sixth goals of his senior campaign.

William & Mary (4-8-0) drew a goal back a few minutes later, but junior midfielder Sam Williams restored the Tar Heels’ two-goal lead four minutes before halftime. Williams charged into the penalty box to strike a shot off a pass from Bertil Hansen after Carolina’s build up play on the right flank, beating the keeper for his third goal of the fall.

Vician got into the scoresheet three minutes into the second half, pouncing on a deflected save off Eapen and slotting a shot into the net to make it 4-1. The UNC grad student then added his tenth goal of the season in the 61st minute, using a feed from midfielder Andrew Czech to curl a right-footed shot into the left side netting and put the game firmly out of reach. The Tribe added its second goal in the 72nd minute.

The high-scoring performance was the most goals Carolina men’s soccer has scored since a 6-0 rout of East Tennessee State in early September. The win, which was in UNC’s final non-conference game of this season, also marked a program milestone for head coach Carlos Somoano. The victory is his 175th leading the Tar Heels, which moved Somoano past Marvin Allen for second most wins in the team’s history.

Up next for the Tar Heels is a top-ten matchup with major implications for the ACC men’s soccer standings. Carolina (8-1-4, 3-1-1 ACC) will host No. 4 Pitt at Dorrance Field on Saturday, with kick-off set for 6 p.m. The Panthers are currently atop the conference table with a 4-1 record in ACC play, but a win by UNC would vault the Tar Heels past Pitt.

 

Featured photo via UNC Athletics Communications/Stephen Blue.

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