University of North Carolina Athletics
#8 Tar Heels Visit NC State Friday Night
October 16, 2014 | Men's Soccer
North Carolina (9-4) enters the weekend on a four-match winning streak, and sits third in the Coastal Division with nine points courtesy of a 3-2 mark in the ACC. UNC is one point out of first, currently owned by Notre Dame and Virginia with 10 points.
Carolina leads the ACC in goals (29) and assists (30) with two weeks remaining in the regular season. The defense has been stellar as well, posting seven shutouts and a 0.92 goals-against-average.
Andy Craven is second in the ACC with 17 points and leads the conference with eight goals and leads the country with six game winners. He is second with 1.3 points per game, while super sub Nyambi Jabang is third with 1.1 points per game.
The Tar Heels were in action this past Tuesday, picking up a 4-0 blanking of non-conference foe Georgia State. Craven scored his league-leading eighth goal, and Jabang scored two magnificent goals to give the home team a 3-0 lead at halftime.
Verneri Valimaa added a late goal in capping the victory.
Carolina has scored 18 goals in the last five matches, and its season total of 29 leads the ACC and ranks fifth nationally among all Division I men's programs. The club is averaging 3.6 goals in the last five outings, compiling 38 points (18 goals, 20 assists), while outscoring its opponents 18-6.
In fact, after falling behind 2-0 to Clemson on Oct. 3, UNC has scored 15 unanswered goals, posting three-straight clean sheets leading into Friday against the Wolfpack.
Carolina is 5-0-2 in its last seven matches at NC State, including three-consecutive wins on the Pack's home grounds.
NC State (5-4-3) is 2-0-1 in its last three matches and sits fifth in the Atlantic Division with five points on a 1-2-2 league slate.
Nick Surkamp leads the Wolfpack with four goals in 2014. Junior keeper Alex McCauley is the reigning ACC Player of the Week after a win over No. 5 Louisville and a scoreless draw at Boston College. He leads the league with 52 saves.
Carolina plays its final regular season road match at Boston College next Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m. The Tar Heels are back at Fetzer Field Tuesday against Georgia Southern and Saturday, Nov. 1 against Virginia. Both matches are scheduled to kick at 7 p.m.
