University of North Carolina Athletics
Men's Soccer Earn 4th Seed in ACC Tournament
June 21, 1999 | Men's Soccer
November 11, 1998
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- The North Carolina men's soccer team will face Maryland Thursday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Tar Heels (11-5-2, 3-3 ACC) and Terrapins (12-6, 3-3 ACC) tied for fourth place in the ACC regular season with UNC receiving the fourth seed in the Tournament based on its 2-1 overtime win at Maryland on Oct. 10. Maryland is ranked No. 15 in the nation this week by Soccer News, #16 by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and No. 20 by Soccer America. The winner of Thursdays match advances to face top-seeded Clemson Friday at 5:30 p.m. Carolina is led by freshman Chris Carrieri, who leads the Tar Heels in goals (13) and scoring (29) this season, sophomore Caleb Norkus (seven goals-4 assists-18 points) and a strong young defensive corps. The Tar Heels hope for a strong performance this weekend and a possible NCAA Tournament bid. Carolina has not advanced to the NCAA Tournament since 1994, when it lost to James Madison, 1-0, in the first round.
Norkus May Miss Maryland Game
Carolina sophomore forward Caleb Norkus tore the PCL in his right knee in Sunday's overtime loss at South Carolina and might not play in this weekends ACC Tournament. Norkus, who ranks second on the Carolina team with seven goals and 18 points, is listed as questionable for this weekends action. It will be a gametime decision as to whether Norkus can play in the ACC Tournament.
Earlier this Season versus Maryland
Tar Heel freshman Chris Leitch scored at the 104:36 mark off an assist by fellow freshman Daniel Jackson to give Carolina a come-from-behind, 2-1 overtime victory at #18 Maryland on Oct. 10. The game was scoreless at halftime and Terp freshman Taylor Twellman scored unassisted at the 56:15 mark for a 1-0 Maryland lead. Carolinas Michael Bucy scored unassisted at 71:58 to tie the score when he put back a rebound off an indirect kick.
The Series with the Terps
Carolina is 33-17-2 all-time against Maryland, including a 2-1 overtime victory this season. However, Maryland has won 10 of the last 15 games between the two schools. UNC head coach Elmar Bolowich is 4-8 in 12 career games against the Terrapins.
In the National Rankings
In this week's national rankings, Carolina is ranked 19th by Soccer America and 23rd by Soccer News (as of Nov. 9). UNC was ranked as high as 16th last week. Prior to last week, the last time the Tar Heels were ranked nationally was Oct. 7, 1996, when they reached No. 12 in the nation after tying #2 Virginia and defeating #4 Duke in an eight-day span.
Young Heels Impressive Thus Far
The Tar Heel roster features just one senior and eight upperclassmen overall, but Carolina has begun to come together and play cohesively this season despite its inexperience. Before losing an overtime heartbreaker, 2-1, at #9 South Carolina Sunday, UNC had gone unbeaten in its last eight games, outscoring its opponents by a combined 20-8 margin during the streak. Carolina already has eclipsed its win totals >from each of the last two seasons and has matched its win total from 1995. Carolina went 6-13 (1-5 ACC) in 1997, 8-8-1 (2-3-1 ACC) in 1996 and 11-8-1 (0-5-1 ACC) in 1995. The Heels eight-game unbeaten streak matched their longest under the tutelage of head coach Elmar Bolowich. Carolina also posted eight-game unbeaten stretches under Bolowich in 1994 (8-0-0), in 1992 (6-0-2) and in 1991 (7-0-1). The last time the Tar Heels had a better unbeaten stretch was when they won 9 in a row in 1987 under head coach Anson Dorrance. With 39 goals thus far in 1998, Carolina has topped its goal totals >from each of the last two seasons (29 in 1997 and 33 in 1996).
Carrieri Makes a Splash
Freshman forward Chris Carrieri has been one of the top freshmen in the ACC this season. Carrieri leads Carolina with 64 shots, 13 goals and 29 points this fall. His 13 goals and 29 points are the most by a Tar Heel since Temoc Suarez had 16 and 39, respectively, in 1995. The UNC freshman record for goals in a season is 16, owned by Louis Bush (1967), Shawn Ritchie (1983) and Temoc Suarez (1993). Suarezs 39 points as a freshman in 93 are also a Carolina record. Carrieris 1.61 points per game place him sixth in the ACC overall and second among freshmen to Marylands Taylor Twellman (2.06 ppg). His 13 goals are fourth in the conference overall and second among freshmen to Twellman (14). Carrieris six game-winning goals lead the Tar Heels.
Strong Defense
Carolina has already won more games this season than it did in either 1996 or 1997, and a large part of that improvement is due to a strong Tar Heel defense this fall. The Tar Heels have scored 39 goals this season (2.17 per game) and allowed 26 (1.44 per game). Carolina allowed 15 goals by ACC oppoents during the 1997 season in going 1-5 in the conference. This season, UNC allowed 11 goals by ACC oppoents in regular season play. Junior David Popp, sophomore Eddie Robinson and freshmen Daniel Jackson and John Wean all have played very well on the back line for Carolina this fall. And this defensive improvement comes despite the loss of sweeper and team captain Matt Laycock for the season to knee troubles.
Yamauchi Fits In Nicely
Freshman midfielder Noz Yamauchi has made a successful transition to collegiate soccer this season. The Chapel Hill native leads the Tar Heels in assists with six this year and has scored three goals for 12 points, good for fourth on the team.
Carolina in the ACC Tournament
Carolina is 8-10-1 in 11 previous ACC Tournament appearances and have lost five of its last six ACC Tournament games entering Thursdays matchup with Maryland. UNC has advanced to the semifinals six times (1987-88-91-92-93-95) and to the finals twice (1987-88). The Tar Heels won the inaugural ACC Tournament in 1987. UNC head coach Elmar Bolowich is 3-9-1 in ACC Tournament games, including a 1-1 record versus Maryland.
Carolina's All-ACC Tournament Selections Year
Player(s) 1987 Derek Missimo*, David Smyth, Dino Megaloudis, Marc Buffin 1991 Adam Tinkham, Ben DiMeo 1992 Gregg Berhalter 1993 Hector Suarez, Temoc Suarez 1995 Temoc Suarez *ACC Tournament MVP
Laycock Redshirting
Sophomore Matt Laycock is seeking a medical redshirt for the 1998 season while being bothered with injuries to both knees. Laycock underwent surgery on his left knee at the beginning of preseason practice in August to repair lingering damage that required surgery at the close of the 1997 campaign. He battled back to play in four games this season but now is bothered by an injury to his right knee that has kept him out of action since the Sept. 27 match with Virginia.
Another Winning Season Against Tough Schedule With a season record of 11-5-2 entering the ACC Tournament, Carolina has ensured a .500-or-better record for the 40th time in the last 41 years. The lone losing season in the last 41 years was 1997, when the Tar Heels went 6-13. This remarkable span of success has come despite annually playing in the ACC, regarded as the best soccer conference in the nation. This season, Carolina has played six ranked teams, #3 Clemson, #4 Virginia, #3 Duke, #18 Maryland, #19 Wake Forest and #9 South Carolina, and will face #15 Maryland Thursday in the ACC Tournament.
Head Coach Elmar Bolowich
Now in his 10th season as Carolinas head coach, Elmar Bolowich has a career coaching record of 108-77-12, all at UNC. Bolowich has led the Tar Heels to four NCAA appearances.
Among the ACC Leaders
Chris Carrieri: 6th in points scored, 4th in goals; William Woodroffe: 5th in GAA, 7th in saves
Fast Facts
The Tar Heels have outscored their opponents by a 39-26 margin this season ... The Heels have outscored their opponents, 16-6, in the first half in 1998 ... UNC has already won more games this season (11) than it did in all of 1996 (8) or 1997 (6) ... Carolina is 2-4 against ranked teams with wins being a 2-1 overtime victory at #18 Maryland on Oct. 10 and a 2-1 win over #19 Wake Forest Nov. 1 ... The Tar Heels are 7-1-1 at home, 3-3-1 away and 1-1-1 at neutral sites ... Carolina is 7-0-1 when leading at halftime, 3-4-1 when tied at halftime and 1-1-0 when trailing at intermission ... UNC is 2-1-2 in overtime games this year.
Tar Heel Honors:
ACC Player of the Week: Chris Leitch (Oct. 12 co-winner), Chris Carrieri (Nov. 2) Soccer America Team of the Week: Chris Carrieri (Nov. 2) Nike Wake Forest Classic All-Tournament Team: Joe DiSalvo, Michael Bucy Nike Carolina Classic Team MVP: David Popp
Carolina Soccer on the Web
Want to know more about Carolina mens soccer or any other Tar Heel sport? Check out tarheelblue.com, the official internet site of the UNC Athletic Department.
ACC Faxback Information
You can learn more about Carolina and Atlantic Coast Conference soccer by contacting the ACC Faxback system. Call (336) 854-5859 from the handset of your fax machine to aaccess the following documents* 61550 (UNC release and stats), 61554 (UNC schedule and roster) and 5550 (ACC release and stats).
