North Carolina
Penn State (Vonnie Gros Classic)
UNC Picks Up Third Shutout, 4-0 Over Penn State
September 13, 2008 | Field Hockey
Sept. 13, 2008
WEST CHESTER, Pa. - Four different players scored as the third-ranked North Carolina field hockey team beat No. 11 Penn State 4-0 Saturday afternoon at the Vonnie Gros Classic, hosted by West Chester University. The Tar Heels improved to 3-2 with the win while Penn State fell to 2-3. The game was a rematch of the 2007 NCAA Championship, which UNC won 3-0 last November to claim the program's fifth national title.
Carolina will face the host Golden Rams Sunday at 2:30 p.m. on the second day of the Vonnie Gros Classic. Gros is the former WCU coach and the mentor of Tar Heel coach Karen Shelton, who was named national player of the year three times during her field hockey career at West Chester.
Just shy of seven minutes into the game, senior captain Britt van Beek gave UNC the only goal it would need against the Nittany Lions. The score was her fifth of the season, the second gamewinner. In the 17th minute, redshirt freshman Elizabeth Stephens deflected a cross from junior Illse Davids into the goal, which put the Tar Heels up 2-0 at the break.
Just after halftime, Davids got a goal of her own, scoring on an assist from from fellow junior Danielle Forword. Forward had the final goal, on an assist from freshman Taryn Gjurich, a forward from Hatfield, Pa., who was playing in her home state for the first time as a Tar Heel.
Goalkeepers Jackie Kintzer and Brianna O'Donnell, both from Pennsylvania, shared the team's third shutout of the year. Kintzer, a sophomore from Robesonia, played the first half, making two saves. O'Donnell, a junior from Collegeville, made one save in playing the final 35 minutes.
The Tar Heels outshot the Nittany Lions 18-5 and had six corners to five by PSU. The Carolina roster includes nine players from the state of Pennsylvania and all of them saw action Saturday. In addition to Gjurich, Kintzer and O'Donnell, they are Melanie Brill (Oley), Teryn Brill (Oley), Elizabeth Drazdowski (Mountain Top), Katelyn Falgowski (Landenberg), Kate Scholl (East Greenville) and Jen Slocum (Carlisle).
North Carolina fell from first to third in this week's national poll, the first since the preseason, after dropping two of its first three games. Since a 2-1 loss in penalty strokes at Wake Forest on Sept. 5, the Tar Heels have outscored opponents 15-0, including an 11-0 win over Georgetown on Sept. 7. All three of their wins have been shutouts, with a 6-0 season-opening win over Michigan in addition to the Georgetown and Penn State victories.
No. 3 North Carolina 4, No. 11 Penn State 0
Scoring: UNC - Britt van Beek, 6:56; UNC - Elizabeth Stephens (Illse Davids), 16:35; UNC - Davids (Danielle Forword), 38:48; UNC - Forword (Taryn Gjurich), 63:20
Shots: UNC 18, PSU 5
Penalty corners: UNC 6, PSU 5
Goalkeeper saves: UNC 3 (Jackie Kintzer 2, Brianna O'Donnell 1); PSU 11 (Jen Beaumont)
Records: UNC 3-2, Penn State 2-3
UNC starters: Illse Davids, Riley Foster, Taryn Gjurich, Kiki Norbruis, Melanie Brill, Kate Scholl, Britt van Beek, Elizabeth Drazdowski, Danielle Forword, Katelyn Falgowski, Jackie Kintzer
UNC substitutes: Teryn Brill, Charlotte Verstraten, Elizabeth Stephens, Meghan Dawson, Jen Slocum, Casey Burns, Louise McNutt, Brianna O'Donnell
