University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels to Face UConn in "Clash of National Champions" on Saturday
August 21, 2002 | Men's Soccer
Aug. 21, 2002
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The defending national champion University of North Carolina men's soccer team will face the University of Connecticut in an exhibition game on Saturday evening at 7 p.m. at SAS Stadium in Cary, N.C., home of the WUSA's Carolina Courage.
The game, billed as the "Clash of National Champions,"will match the last two NCAA championship teams - the Tar Heels (2001) and the Huskies (2000).
Tickets will be available at the SAS Stadium ticket office on Saturday prior to the contest. Tickets cost $5 for adults and $3 for youths under 18 years of age. For more information, fans should call the Carolina Courage ticket office at 919-573-7626. Directions to SAS Stadium are available on the Courage's web site, www.carolinacourage.com.
"This game definitely will be a good test for our team," Tar Heel head coach Elmar Bolowich says. "UConn has been a top-notch program for some time, and they have a good team this season. We are a bit inexperienced on defense and Saturday's game will be a good measuring-stick for us."
The Tar Heels went 21-4 in 2001 and won the NCAA championship with a 2-0 win over Indiana in the College Cup final in Columbus, Ohio. Seven starters return from last fall, but Carolina lost a trio of four-year starters on the defensive unit to graduation - goalkeeper Michael Ueltschey, defender Chris Leitch and two-time All-America defender Danny Jackson. All three currently are playing professional soccer.
Saturday's game is Carolina's lone exhibition game of the 2002 season. The Tar Heels will kick off the regular season next weekend when they host the annual Nike Carolina Classic on Aug. 30 and Sept. 1. This year's Nike Carolina Classic field includes the University of Akron and national powers Saint Louis and Wake Forest.
