University of North Carolina Athletics
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NC State
Tar Heels Advance in ACC Tourney with 2-0 Win over State
November 10, 2004 | Men's Soccer
Nov. 10, 2004
CARY, N.C. - Senior midfielder Andrew Rhea and sophomore forward Jamie Watson each scored second half goals to lead No. 3-seeded North Carolina (10-7-2) to a 2-0 win over No. 6-seeded NC State (8-8-2) Wednesday in quarterfinal action of the 2004 Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Soccer Championship at SAS Soccer Park. Following their first conference tournament win since 2001, the Tar Heels move on to face No. 2 seed Maryland Friday at 8 p.m.
After a scoreless first half, Rhea finally got the Tar Heels on the board with his first goal of the season at the 72:26 mark. Sophomore midfielder Blake Beach served the ball into the box, where Rhea settled it and tapped it past NC State goalkeeper Jorge Gonzalez into the lower left-hand corner of the net for a 1-0 Carolina lead.
NC State nearly knotted the scored in the 79th minute but Tar Heel keeper Ford Williams made a leaping save off a John Queeley free kick to hold the one-goal advantage.
Almost eight minutes after the first score, the Tar Heels tacked on a second goal off the foot of Watson. Freshman Dax McCarty sent a free kick from the far sideline into the box, where Watson was waiting to deflect it into the net for his seventh goal of the season.
The Wolfpack threatened late to get on the scoreboard, but the Tar Heel backline and Williams, who had three saves, were able to hold off NC State for Carolina's sixth shutout, and Williams' fifth, of the season. Carolina also blanked NC State, 2-0, in Chapel Hill on October 24. The Tar Heels are unbeaten in their last 10 meetings with the Wolfpack. NC State did advance past UNC on penalty kicks in last year's quarterfinal round.
In the first half, the Tar Heels held a commanding 6-1 advantage in shots, but both teams had chances to score, as Rhea fired a shot off the post in the 11th minute, and NC State's El Hadj Cisse hit the cross bar in the sixth minute of action. Carolina outshot the Wolfpack 11-5 for the match.
Carolina's next opponent, Maryland, was a 2-0 winner over Clemson earlier Friday. The Terps downed the Tar Heels, 1-0, in College Park on October 10.
Scoring: 1. UNC - Andrew Rhea (Blake Beach), 72:26 2. UNC - Jamie Watson (Dax McCarty), 80:16 Goals: Andrew Rhea (UNC), Jamie Watson (UNC) Assists: Blake Beach (UNC), Dax McCarty (UNC) Goalie Stats: Ford Williams (UNC): 0 goals allowed, 3 saves, 90 minutes; Jorge Gonzalez (NCSU): 2 goals allowed,4 saves, 90 minutes Shots: UNC 11, NCSU 5 Fouls: NCSU 16, UNC 12 Corners: UNC 3, NCSU 3 Offsides: UNC 4, NCSU 0 Attendance: 2,314Score by Halves Team 1-2-Final NCSU 0-0-0 UNC 0-2-2
