A complete team effort by No. 4 UNC women’s soccer Sunday afternoon gave Carolina its first conference victory of the 2021 fall season, a 3-0 win over No. 22 Clemson.
The result marked a return to form for the Tar Heels, as they rebounded from nearly taking a loss against Virginia Tech on Thursday to pick up their fourth ranked win of the current campaign.
Midfielder Bella Sember opened the scoring for Carolina in the 32nd minute with a rocket from outside the 18-yard box. It marked the first goal in a Tar Heel uniform for the freshman from Centerport, N.Y. Sember made multiple Tiger defenders miss before driving the ball into the back of the net.
Carolina’s second goal came on a clinical counterattack, with midfielder Lauren Wrigley intercepting a Clemson pass, then threading a beautiful ball to teammate Isabel Cox in stride. Cox’s only touch on the ball put it past the goalkeeper and gave the Tar Heels a 2-0 advantage.
But the highlight of the day came when Rachel Jones drew a foul inside Clemson’s box, leading to a penalty kick with less than six minutes remaining. But rather than having Jones take the kick, head coach Anson Dorrance instead called upon goalkeeper Claudia Dickey to do the honors. And in the rare goalkeeper versus goalkeeper showdown, Dickey looked like a striker as she sent the ball into the top corner for Carolina’s third goal. It is, of course, Dickey’s only goal of her four-year career in Chapel Hill (so far).
For the game, the UNC defense held Clemson to just one shot on goal, and none in the second half, while striking eight shots on goal themselves. Clemson also did not take a single corner kick.
With the win, the Tar Heels move to 8-1-1 overall and 1-1-1 in conference play, and will have an extended break before another home game with No. 7 Virginia on Sunday, October 3 in Chapel Hill.
Featured image via Carolina Athletics
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