University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels Advance With 2-1 Win Over Liberty
November 15, 2014 | Field Hockey
Duke beat Northwestern 2-1 in the second of two first-round games at Henry Stadium Saturday.
“I'd like to start off by congratulating Liberty on a great season,” UNC coach Karen Shelton said. “They're one of the best teams we've played this year. They're well-disciplined, hard-working and scrappy, and it was a hard-fought game.”
The Tar Heels scored first, exactly seven minutes into the game. On UNC's second corner of the afternoon, junior Emma Bozek deflected in Nina Notman's initial shot to put Carolina up 1-0.
Liberty tied the game in the 15th minute of play. When UNC keeper Shannon Johnson came out to play a ball, the Flames worked it around her and into the goal on a pass by Ashlee Krulock and shot from Alynn Richardson.
Junior Casey Di Nardo scored the gamewinner in the 29th minute, on the team's fourth corner of the day. Notman's initial hit was to the right side, and Di Nardo redirected it into the cage to give the Tar Heels a 2-1 lead.
“I thought we played a tough game,” Shelton said. “It's not easy hosting – sometimes it puts pressure on the team. All you want to do is survive and advance and we were able to do that today. I'm really proud of Casey Di Nardo for scoring that second goal, which was huge. We're happy just to live for another day.”
The Tar Heels are making their 31st appearance in the NCAA Tournament and will play Sunday for trip to the final four.
No. 1 UNC 2, No. 20 Liberty 1
Scoring: UNC – Emma Bozek (Nina Notman), 7:00; LU – Alynn Richardson (Ashlee Krulock), 14:01; UNC – Casey Di Nardo (Notman), 28:48
Shots: UNC 14 (8/6), LU 7 (2/5)
Penalty corners: UNC 7 (4/3), LU 5 (0/5)
Saves: UNC 2 (Shannon Johnson, 70:00, 2 saves, 1 goal allowed); LU 4 (Mallory Cuccio, 69:37; 4 saves, 2 goal allowed)
Records: UNC 18-3, LU 14-8
