The Louisville Cardinals were the only team in the shortened season to trip up the UNC field hockey program. But on Sunday, with a conference title on the line, it looked like the Cardinals may best the Tar Heels again.
Down 2-0 goals in the second quarter, head coach Karen Shelton’s UNC squad stormed back to score four straight goals and ultimately won the ACC Championship 4-2. Star forward Erin Matson netted two goals, including the brace with one minute remaining, while sophomore back Madison Orobono scored the go-ahead goal just before the end of the third quarter.
UNC played the game as the second seed in the tournament and from the visitor’s bench, despite Sunday’s game being played at Karen Shelton Stadium. In October, Louisville beat Carolina 3-1, snapping the Heels’ remarkable 47-game win streak and taking the top spot in the conference’s standings.
Shelton, whose program has now won 23 ACC titles, congratulated and complimented Louisville’s performance following the game.
โThey play with such composure and poise and that makes them a very difficult team to play against,” she said. “They dominated in the first half and we gave up a couple of goals but we didnโt crack. It was a tale of two halves โ they had the better of the first and I think we had the better of the second.
“Iโm thrilled that our kids were able to find a way to win,” Shelton added.
The tournament run caps off a history-making streak for Carolina, as they won games to earn Shelton’s 700th win as a head coach and another to make her the winningest coach in collegiate field hockey history.
Matson earned a familiar honor after the game, being named to the ACC All-Tournament Team for the third year in a row as well as the tournament MVP.
No NCAA tournament awaits UNC for now. The ACC was the only conference to hold field hockey matches this fall due to the coronavirus pandemic. At the moment, the NCAA plans to hold a nationwide tournament in the spring.
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