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No. 6 Penn State Downs No. 2 Women's Soccer, 3-2
September 12, 1999 | Women's Soccer
Sept. 12, 1999
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The sixth-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions got two goals from freshman forward Christie Welsh and a late first half goal by sophomore defender Kristen Phillips to record a 3-2 upset win over second-ranked North Carolina in women's soccer action Sunday afternoon.
The loss was the first for Carolina at home since October 19, 1994 when Duke defeated the Tar Heels at Fetzer Field 3-2. That same game was also the last time Carolina trailed an opponent by as many as two goals in a game. The loss was only the seventh for UNC at home in its history and drops Carolina's all-time home record to 189-7-2. Carolina's all-time women's soccer record, including games at all sites, fell to 446-18-11 with the loss to the Nittany Lions.
"Penn State was clearly the better team on the field today," said North Carolina Head Coach Anson Dorrance. "Coach (Patrick Farmer's) team played tougher than we did and they had more heart than we did. We must go back and find a way to play the way Penn State played today. With the parity in women's soccer today, no team can win on its tradition any more. Our girls will learn to understand that. We must rise to a higher level of play.
"I think Penn State came in here and possibly underestimated Duke in Friday night's game. They may not have known how good this Duke team is. And when they got beat I was worried because I knew we would get their best shot on Sunday."
Sunday's loss should not have come as a great shock to anyone who has seen this young team play so far this season. It was the third game out of five in which the Tar Heels faced an early first half deficit and after rallying for wins against Notre Dame and Connecticut, the Tar Heels did not have enough firepower to come back against a big, physical team like Penn State. UNC is missing five first team All-Americas off last year's squad at this time with Cindy Parlow, Tiffany Roberts and Siri Mullinix lost to graduation, Laurie Schwoy lost for the year with a hamstring problem and Lorrie Fair out indefinitely with severe back spasms. It is not known when she can return to the Tar Heel lineup.
"Despite the result, I am proud of how our team played out there today and the fact that we never gave up," says Dorrance. "But people must understand how truly young this year's team is. You cannot take the people off the field who we have lost and expect us to be the same time. But this is a wonderful learning opportunity for our younger players. They must take advantage of it. We have already played the #3, #5 and #6 teams in the nation and have #1 coming up in less than two weeks. I am thrilled for this team to have those challenges."
Carolina got on the board first at the 7:28 mark of the game when Raven McDonald volleyball a shot into the right side of the net, assisted by Susan Bush and Kalli Kamholz. But Welsh put Penn State up 2-1 on two goals only 2:02 apart midway through the first half. Both were unassisted. Phillips scored her goal just 5:09 before intermission on an assist by Jeannine Verdrager. Down 3-1 at the half, Carolina managed only five shots in the second half and scored only with 7:24 to play on a penalty kick by freshman Kim Patrick. UNC forward Susan Bush was taken down in the box to set up the penalty kick. Carolina had only one more shot on goal the entire game and it was a last ditch effort by Jena Kluegel that went wide.
Most Valuable Players for the Nike Carolina Classic (one for each team) were Susan Bush of North Carolina, Emily Oleksiuk of Penn State, Aimee Bugay of Colorado and Sherrill Kester of Duke.
The Tar Heels return to the pitch on Friday, September 17 when they will play host to Florida State at 2:30 p.m. in Carolina's Atlantic Coast Conference opener.
#6 PENN STATE 3 0--3 #2 NORTH CAROLINA 1 1--2
UNC: Raven McDonald (Susan Bush, Kalli Kamholz), 7:28
PSU: Christie Welsh (unassisted), 22:27
PSU: Christie Welsh (unassisted), 24:29
PSU: Kris Phillips (Jeannine Verdrager), 39:51
UNC: Kim Patrick (unassisted), 82:36
Shots: Penn State 12, North Carolina 15
Corner Kicks: Penn State 3, North Carolina 10
Goalie Saves: Emily Oleksiuk (PSU) 8, Kristin DePlatchett (UNC) 5
Fouls: Penn State 16, North Carolina 10
Offsides: Penn State 5, North Carolina 1
Yellow Cards: Kris Phillips (PSU), 54:11, tackle from behind, Luanne Strom (PSU), 79:50, delay of game
Starting Lineups:
Penn State - Emily Oleksiuk (GK), Gillian Samuel (D), Shari Pickett (M), Bonnie Young (M), Courtney Lawson (M), Kelly Convey (F), Christie Welsh (F), Luanne Strom (D), Kristen Phillips (D), Megan McKeown (F), Megan Mills (D)
North Carolina - Kristin DePlatchett (GK), Kim Patrick (CF), Rebekah McDowell (DCM), Jena Kluegel (ACM), Kalli Kamholz (LB), Anne Remy (RM), Lindsay Stoecker (CB), Raven McDonald (LM), Susan Bush (RW), Meredith Florance (LW), Danielle Borgman (RB)
Officials: Daniel Burak (Referee), Don Kim (Assistant Referee), Dustin Thorne (Assistant Referee)
Records: Penn State 3-1, North Carolina 4-1
Attendance: 4,213
