University of North Carolina Athletics
Quotes From The Post-Match Press Conference
December 7, 2008 | Women's Soccer
Dec. 7, 2008
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UNC Head Coach - Anson Dorrance - Post-game Quotes
"We're absolutely thrilled to be sitting here as 2008 national champions. I'm especially proud of a team that never gave up. They were behind against Texas A&M in the quarters and fought our way back, we were behind today and fought our way back, and I'm just incredibly proud of this group. They're just a really enjoyable bunch of young women to be with, its been one of those dream seasons for us."
On Casey
"Casey Nogueira has remarkable soccer tools, her first touch is exquisite, she has every trick in the book. If you don't believe this just jump on YouTube and you'd be hard pressed to figure out which one is Casey and which one is Ronaldinho. She has every conceivable soccer skill. But that doesn't necessarily make a great player, you could be a great juggler and still be totally ineffective on the field. So her evolution as a player is to take all these remarkable tools she has and figure out how and when to use it. Her strike is also extraordinary.
"The two goals she struck today were world class finishes. If both of those goals were scored in a premiership game, you would be seeing both of those goals on a highlight reel at the end of the week. On the greatest platform we have, which is the National Chamiponship final, she scored two of the most phenomenal goals I've ever seen. Our game doesn't get much exposure, and certainly for the young girls that are watching, it gets almost none. As far as these young girls think, the only people that can hit that kind of strike are the men that play in the premiership."
"In the National Championship final, people who Tivo'd that game can show their kids this is how woman can play. I think Casey has the potential if she puts all the pieces together to be one of the greatest players in the world. And I think what you're seeing right now is this evolution. So I am absolutely ecstatic watching her evolve. She is evolving right before our eyes. In my opinion the sky is the limit for her."
"This team has so much fun together. I would go to practices, and this is not an exaggeration, we couldn't start practice because it was like attending sorority rush. Everyone was chatting, they hadn't seen each other in 24 hours but it seemed like they hadn't seen each other in years. Everyone was catching up on all the years when they were separated. The only way I could get them to shut up in the pregame is if I threatened to throw people out of the pregame. This team has a wonderful kind of joyous anarchy. I'm certainly not in control of it, but it was one of the most joyful seasons ever."
"What are attitude coming into this one was our route to a championship was to beat two undefeated teams. So the attitude in practice is we were the spoiler. Do you know how rare it is for us to come in to an environment as a spoiler? We were celebrating the fact that we were finally the underdogs. What a joyful place to compete from, where there was no pressure on us, no expectation, the old everyone thinks we suck thing. And all of a sudden now we were playing from a platform of totalfreedom. It is the most wonderful position to play from. And we came into this weekend with that attitude, and we kept it the whole time. This is one of the most enjoyable falls I have ever had in my whole life."
UNC Players
Post-game Quotes
"I owe all of it to my team and Anson who has been a great coach. When I came in here as a freshman there was a lot I had to learn and he taught me so much. Just being here at North Carolina has taught me so much, and I am just so honored to be a part of this program."
"It means a lot be a National Champion, I remember my freshman year it was really special. The team is always just like a family. It is so special to be a part of this program and be National Champions."
On first goal:
"I just hit it as hard as I could, and thank goodness it went in."
On second goal:
"I think that they were waiting for me to cut inside like I always do, and than I saw a couple players there so I just cut outside and I was trying to get to the end line than I realized that she was going to catch up to me so I just hit it across and it hit somebody and went in."
On being from North Carolina
"This field is always special to come play at because it is close to home, and I played a high school championship here. So just to come here and play for the Tar Heels is an amazing experience."
On beating Notre Dame
"It means a lot, Notre Dame is an amazing team and it was the best competition I could hope for in a National Championship. I think our team came in really hyped up for the game because Notre Dame has beaten us before, so that was motivation for us."
Ashlyn Harris
"I think one thing we remember from playing them is how physical they are. They battle, the battle the whole 90 minutes and I think it was a bit of a shock the last two times we played them. We were getting thrown around and it kind of affected the way we played. I think throughout the season people thought we were soft, and if we got hit we would stop playing. I think today was a testament to that, I think we battled the whole entire game, the whole 90 minutes. I'm so proud of our squad I think they stepped up huge today against a really good team. But if anything we took from playing against them it was there physicality."
"Right after they scored, we just went at them. Its probably the hardest I have ever seen our team play the entire year. And some might not have thought we could do it. We were sacrificing our body left and right, we were playing so hard. We left nothing, we gave it all we could, and I think we played great."
On first goal:
"Looking back on the goal, obviously sometimes weather conditions can go against you. The first half I was looking into a really brutal sun, it was difficult to see the ball. We had the wind and the balls were dieing on the back line so its difficult to read and judge the ball when you need to come when you need to stay. I think we were a little cold, and we were caught flat footed and I think they took advantage of it. We didn't quit, and that's what I respect most about this squad. A lot of teams would have just curled up and died. We got scored on in the first minute of the game, that shows how strong we are, we didn't stop."
"I think it was a missed clearance, and the ball got played over our back line and with the wind it just died right on her foot. And Kerri Hanks is a great player, there's no way I'm going to come flying out for that ball, she'll tap it right past me or dribble me. I have way to much respect for her. I had to come out and make myself as big as I could, she just had so much time she just tapped it right past me in the corner."
"When I first committed here it was one of the best days of my life. Getting here and having a preseason like we did, to feel so welcomed into a college environment for our freshman was incredible. "
Randy Waldrum, Notre Dame Head Coach
Opening Statement:
"I'm just really proud of our girls, that's it."
On second half strategy after going long in the first half:
"I think going against the wind was a little difficult to get out. We had to play a little longer than we wanted and I thought we were better with that in the second half."
On second half strategy overall and if they fell back defensively after the TV timeout:
"I actually thought we were better after about 15 minutes. I thought early in the second half we were working on finding a way to get our rhythm to get it out. I felt after the first 15 minutes we started to get our rhythm back and create some opportunities late in the game."
On ND's senior class:
"The season has been phenomenal. I told the girls they'll look in a few weeks and recognize how great of a season it's been. I told the girls the seniors have set the bar really high with three final fours in four years and short of some outside influences we probably could have had two national championships. I think that the standard has been extremely high. Kerri's set an amazing bar for forwards in the future and I think all of our seniors have set an incredible bar for the team."
Kerri Hanks, F
On her goal 16 seconds into the match:
"Courtney Rosen played the ball through, I just made a run and was lucky to finish it."
On the early goal helping team and subsequently going into defensive mode:
"That definitely was in our game plan. We scored a goal early and that was good for our team. We just tried to keep doing it and just couldn't get it done. I think we played a good game but that's how it goes, that's the game of soccer."
On being undefeated and coming so close to a championship:
"Our season was amazing. You look back at it and we've had an unbelievable run but when it comes down to it you want to finish it off and we just didn't do it this time. We played well and give [North Carolina] credit."
On her 20 seconds heading into the box with the trip and no-call:
"If you're going to call that foul for UNC, you're gonna call that one against me. I was running and I know she didn't mean to trip me but she did. It's in the box and she's the last player. It should have been a call."
On what's next for her after Notre Dame:
"My four years at Notre Dame have been amazing, just short of what I actually wanted to accomplish. Like Randy said, I've been here three times and haven't won it. That was one of my main goals was to come back this year and win it. In the future, I don't know, hopefully the league comes back and I hope to go into that. We'll see."
Kelsey Lysander, GK
On UNC's first goal and if she saw the ball or was screened:
"You have to give [Casey Nogueira] credit, it was a good shot. I could see [the ball]."
On UNC's second goal and if she thought she'd be able to reach it (high shot):
"The second goal my momentum was going the other way and the ball got deflected the way my momentum wasn't going. I was trying to reach it out to obviously stop it."
On ND's aggressive start what they did went UNC went on the offensive later:
"I think we kept up an aggressive nature. I feel like we definitely had chances as well. It wasn't a totally one-sided game. I felt the game was going back and forth"
