University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Duke
Duke Edges Tar Heels In ACC Final On Penalty Kicks
November 13, 2005 | Men's Soccer
Nov. 13, 2005
CARY, N.C. - No. 4 North Carolina and No. 9 Duke played 110 minutes of scoreless soccer for the second time this season, but the Blue Devils claimed the 2005 Atlantic Coast Conference title thanks to a 5-4 edge in penalty kicks Sunday at SAS Soccer Park. The match is officially recorded as a tie, giving the Tar Heels a 15-3-3 mark and the Blue Devils a 12-4-3 record heading into postseason play.
Duke wins its second ACC title and earns the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. The Tar Heels, who were seeded sixth, will hope to earn an at-large bid when the field is announced at 4 p.m. Monday on ESPNews. The win also gives Duke a 5-3 lead in the Carlyle Cup standings, all-sports competition between the Tar Heels and Blue Devils.
"It was the game that we anticipated that it would be," said UNC head coach Elmar Bolowich, whose Tar Heels also played to a scoreless tie with Duke Oct. 28. "It's the second time that we have played for that many minutes and neither team could find a way to score any goals. But you can also look at it as that is part of the beauty of the game. Good players can neutralize each other, and that's what it came down to.
"We neutralized their attack. They neutralized our attack and it still made an entertaining game for the most part with opportunities on both sides. In the end, they prevailed on the PK shootout, and with our guys there is no one to put at fault, not during the course of the match and certainly not in a PK shootout"
After neither team could find the back of the net in regulation or either overtime period, Duke edged Carolina 5-4 in penalty kicks. The Blue Devils' Mike Grella made what proved to be the winning kick in the sixth round.
The Tar Heels had a chance to win their first title since 2000 in the fifth round, but Duke keeper Justin Papadakis saved a Dax McCarty PK to keep the Blue Devils alive. Papadakis followed with a save on UNC's Stephen Bickford in the sixth round to set up Grella's title-winning make.
Carolina made its first four penalty kicks, and Duke's Kyle Helton missed wide left to give the Tar Heels a 4-3 lead through four rounds. Papadakis saved the next two Carolina attempts, and Duke made its next two kicks to secure the crown.
The Tar Heels were credited with their school-record seventh straight shutout, and they now have 14 this season, equaling a school record set in 2001. Junior Justin Hughes went 90 minutes in goal and made two saves. He was pulled after regulation due to a groin injury, giving way to senior Ford Williams, who played 20 shutout minutes. Carolina has not allowed a goal in its last 727:22 of action.
Possession was fairly even in the first half, but the teams combined for just six shots. The Tar Heels had some solid scoring opportunities in the second half, including a flurry in the 50th minute. Carolina forward Ben Hunter nailed a 28-yard free kick that Papadakis saved, and defender David Boole misfired on a follow shot.
Fifteen minutes later, the Tar Heels had another scoring chance when forward Corey Ashe just missed wide on a long serve from Brian Shriver. Shriver later just missed high on a give-and-go with Stephen Bickford in the 73rd minute.
Both teams had chances in the final minutes of the first overtime, as Ashe could not come up with a well-placed cross from Hunter in the 97th minute, and Duke's Michael Videira just missed wide on a bending blast in the 95th minute. The Blue Devils outshot the Tar Heels, 5-4, in overtime but did not put any shots on goal. Duke held an 11-10 advantage in shots in the match.
Carolina was forced to play a man down in the second overtime when junior Blake Beach picked up his second yellow card and was ejected.
The Tar Heels were involved in penalty kicks for the third time in ACC tourney history, downing Wake Forest in 1992 and falling to NC State in 2003.
Carolina had four players earn a spot on the all-tournament team - Hunter, who scored all three Carolina goals in the event, Hughes, McCarty and defender Andre Sherard.
