University of North Carolina Athletics
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NC State
No. 20 Wolfpack Eliminates No. 2 Tar Heels In Shootout
November 11, 2009 | Men's Soccer
Nov. 11, 2009
CARY, N.C. - No. 2 North Carolina battled the elements and No. 20 NC State for 110 minutes of scoreless soccer Wednesday in Atlantic Coast Conference Championship quarterfinal action, but the Tar Heels were eliminated on penalty kicks, 4-1, at WakeMed Soccer Park.
Seventh-seeded NC State (12-5-2) advances to face Boston College Friday in the second of two semifinals, while second-seeded Carolina (13-2-3) will now await Monday's announcement of the 2009 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship field to learn its postseason fate.
After playing a fairly even 110 minutes in a driving rain, the Triangle rivals went to penalty kicks in an ACC quarterfinal for the second time in the last seven seasons and first time since 2003.
State's Tyler Lassiter and Carolina's Michael Farfan took care of business on the first PK attempts, and NCSU goalkeeper Christopher Widman stepped up from there, saving consecutive shots from the Tar Heels' Kirk Urso and Billy Schuler. Korede Aiyegbusi and Widman followed with makes for a 3-1 NC State margin, and Alan Sanchez converted the decisive penalty to lift the Pack to a 4-1 shootout win.
"It was obviously a tough, tough game for us," said North Carolina head coach Elmar Bolowich. "I think it was also a tough game for NC State. I don't blame our players for anything. They gave their best effort. They faced a very strong and well-organized opponent today. They made it difficult for us. In the end it was the team who capitalized on their opportunities the most and in PKs, NC State did that. So congratulations to them."
Both keepers, Widman and Carolina senior Brooks Haggerty, were credited with shutouts and the match is officially recorded as a tie. Haggerty made a season-best five saves to claim his seventh shutout of the season, while Widman made four stops for State.
Overtime followed a final, frantic minute of regulation that saw both North Carolina's Enzo Martinez and NC State's Kris Byrd just miss on good looks at the goal. Martinez lined an open shot from about 15 yards out just over the crossbar, and Byrd's attempt from the left wing was deflected.
The Wolfpack's Chandler Knox nearly ended things less than a minute into the first overtime, when his high shot grazed off the crossbar. North Carolina's Alex Dixon countered with a running shot from the right side on a break, but Widman made a sliding stop. Dixon continued to press in the first OT, following with a shot on frame in the 95th minute.
Martinez fired a shot high early in the second overtime, and Dixon followed with a header on goal in the 108th minute for the final scoring chance before heading to the shootout.
The Tar Heels posted a slight, 14-13, edge in shot attempts, including a 4-2 advantage in overtime. The teams each had four corner kicks and five saves.
Boston College advanced with a 1-0 overtime win over Duke to meet NC State. Virginia, a 1-0 winner over Maryland, and Wake Forest, a 3-0 winner of Clemson, also move on to the semifinals.
