University of North Carolina Athletics
Q&A With Bill Dworsky
September 13, 2007 | Men's Soccer
Sept. 13, 2007
Sophomore forward Bill Dworsky totaled two goals and three assists in his freshman season. This past Sunday, he matched his goal total from a year ago with two goals in the 3-0 victory over Akron for his first career multi-goal game. Prior to Saturday's ACC opener at NC State, TarHeelBlue.com sat down with Dworsky to talk about the Tar Heels' first win on the season and the upcoming matchup with the Wolfpack.
THB: There's been a number of unlucky breaks on offense so far this season, hitting posts and the crossbar. It looks like things finally went your way this past Sunday when the team picked up a 3-0 win against No. 16 Akron. That must have felt pretty good.
Bill: Definitely did- scored more than a goal for the first time this whole season. It really was a case where some of the breaks started to go our way, especially with the third goal coming off sort of a broken play. It definitely feels good to score a few goals and get your first victory for the season.
THB: Being responsible for two goals of those goals had to be exciting as well.
Bill: It always feels good to score, but it was especially satisfying because we finally won. A lot of times when I score, the team doesn't do very well and it feels like an empty goal. They really mean a lot more when the team comes through as well.
THB: Up to that win, your record was 0-1-2. How pumped was the team after getting that first victory?
Bill: Elated. There was definitely a change in the mood of the team. After our game on Friday against Bradley that we tied, everyone felt like it was a loss because we knew that even more so than our other tie, we should have won that game against Bradley. We felt that we let it slip away so that made it even more gratifying to bounce back on Sunday.
THB: The early portion of the out-of-conference schedule is now done with. Conference play starts Saturday with a trip to NC State. What have you learned so far about this year's team?
Bill: Most recently that we do have the ability to come back from adversity. Friday was a real downer for our team because we were gutted after that tie. We came back on Sunday, did well, and we're going to try and carry that into Saturday against the Wolfpack.
THB: What are the key areas you think the team needs to improve on?
Bill: Well we could make this scoring three goals a game thing a trend, that'd be great. They're always little things that we can improve on- technical adjustments, but not necessarily any kind of tactical switches. It kind of depends game to game on how we're playing.
THB: You're playing in the same formation as last year, but with a whole new cast. How different does it feel on the field?
Bill: Different personnel is always going to give different feel to any formation. That being said, formation isn't nearly as important as the personnel within it. We may play the same formation, we may switch at times- they're certain points in a game when the score, the momentum may dictate a change in formation or change in tactics. I think we have a diverse enough group of players on our team to accommodate any kind of change that may be necessary.
THB: Traveling to State this Saturday is one of the bigger games of the year for the team. Growing up in Alabama, did you know much about the UNC-NC State rivalry?
Bill: Actually, yes I did. My brother came to Carolina as an undergrad also, so I'm not quite as much a foreigner around here as some of the other out-of-state kids. I know plenty about the Carolina-State rivalry, and I learned a little bit more about it first-hand last year when we played them.
THB: You fell to State 3-1 last year, their first win over Carolina since 1997. Does that give you a little extra motivation for Saturday?
Bill: It definitely does for me, and I think it does for the rest of the team too. Last year, I was embarrassed by what happened against State. It stuck with me for awhile- it still does when I'm thinking about the game on Saturday. Payback is definitely on the mind.
THB: Last year you started 14 games as a freshman. What was the hardest part about adjusting to the college game?
Bill: The physicality. Everyone in college is bigger, faster, stronger than everyone that you play against in club at the youth level. The game is a lot faster when you go into a tackle with a guy, it hurts a little bit more. There's definitely an adjustment element to that.
THB: What did you learn last year that helped you the most in preparing for this year?
Bill: The term element of the season. A lot of times in club or in the youth it's just going from one tournament to another and they're basically separate entities. Here at Carolina, the season is more viewed as a whole, a long-term process, how we grow from game to game, and the second game may be just as important as the 22nd game. It's all about growth towards a goal rather than an isolated game.
THB: Having just gone through your freshman season, do you see yourself going more out of your way to help the current freshman, or is it more of a team effort?
Bill: Some of both. I try to do it when the opportunity arises, and it's an attitude that we try to cultivate as a team as well. Throughout the athletic department as a whole, there's the CREED program which sort of helps in that process. As a team entity, we definitely want to do as much as we can to help the freshman adjust. Some of them are ready to jump in right away. For example, Tyler Deric has started every game so far. Cameron Brown has been a key contributor already. We've had some freshman playing some serious minutes.
THB: You lost fellow forwards Ben Hunter and Corey Ashe from last year. How has it been adjusting to playing with a new group of forwards?
Bill: I think we mesh well- [Brian] Shriver and I and also when Ryan Johnson comes in the game, Jordan Graye. Everyone brings a different element to the table that can work within our team framework. Losing Ben and Corey is tough, they're great players and they're on to bigger and better things. Times change and you have to adjust to that.
THB: You wore number six last year, but changed to number two this year. What's the story behind that?
Bill: David Rodriguez wanted to wear number six and he asked me if I would trade with him. It wasn't a personal thing for me. David wanted number six for some reason.
THB: When you were introduced into games last season, some fans yelled out `Bama Bill'. Sounds like quite the nickname.
Bill: That doesn't surprise me. That alliteration provides for a nice little shout-out I guess. I've heard some people call me that before, but I don't ask to be called `Bama Bill' or anything like that. Just Bill works fine."
