University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina Claims NCAA Berth, No. 5 National Seed
November 16, 2009 | Men's Soccer
Nov. 16, 2009
INDIANAPOLIS - On the strength of a 13-2-3 record and a top-five national ranking throughout the regular season, North Carolina was awarded the No. 5 national seed in the 2009 NCAA Men's Soccer Division I Championship Monday. The 48-team field was unveiled live on ESPNEWS.
The Tar Heels, who receive a first-round bye as one of 16 seeded squads, will open their 17th NCAA postseason appearance Sunday at Fetzer Field at 2 p.m. against the winner of Thursday's match between Brown and Stony Brook in Providence, R.I. Tickets cost $8 for adults and $5 for students and will be for sale at TarHeelBlue.com.
UNC is 1-1 all-time against Brown and has never faced Stony Brook. The other seeded teams in UNC's quarter of the bracket are No. 4 Ohio State, No. 12 Butler and No. 13 St. John's.
Carolina, which is a top-16 national seed for the fifth time in the last seven years, is making its 10th postseason appearance in the 11 seasons. The Tar Heels, who are 21-15-0 in their NCAA tourney history, have hosted at least one postseason match at Fetzer eight times since 2000.
UNC has made five trips to the NCAA quarterfinals, three trips to the College Cup and won the national title in 2001. Last season, the Tar Heels advanced to the NCAA College Cup and finished as the national runner-up.
Led by All-ACC striker Billy Schuler, the Tar Heels have outscored the opposition by a 38-11 margin. Carolina has four players with at least five goals on the season and ranks seventh nationally in scoring offense with 2.11 goals per game.
Anchored by goalkeeper Brooks Haggerty and all-conference center back Zach Loyd, the Tar Heels' defense has posted nine shutouts and a 0.58 goals against average to rank eighth in the nation.
Carolina was one of seven Atlantic Coast Conference teams to make the 48-team field. Four ACC teams were among the top 16 seeds: No. 2 Virginia, No. 3 Wake Forest, No. 5 North Carolina and No. 15 NC State.
