North Carolina
Connecticut
Tar Heels Top No. 2 UConn For Weekend's Second Road Win
September 28, 2014 | Field Hockey
UNC improved to 8-1 overall with the nonconference win while Connecticut fell to 6-3. The win was Carolina's second of the weekend, following a 3-2 overtime win at the same field against sixth-ranked Boston College Friday in a conference game. Craddock also had the gamewinner in that game and has five this season.
"I'm proud of our team, to come up here and play great competition," Carolina coach Karen Shelton said. "We had a tough game on Friday and not only had to turn it around and play again, but had to turn it around and play in the heat. Connecticut had the same situation, so we were evenly matched.
"But I think our kids played very well. I think the combinations that we had were very good, I think we made progress as the weekend went on, and we showed moments of brilliance. And we just want to have more of those moments. That's what we have to work towards."
For the second time in this season's nine games, UNC found itself in a 1-vs.-2 battle, but this time the Tar Heels were in the top spot. Earlier this year, on Sept. 5, No. 2 UNC won 3-1 at No. 1 Maryland to move to the top of the poll.
The Tar Heels scored first, in the 20th minute of play. Senior Loren Shealy sent a ball across the cage and redshirt freshman Sam Night knocked it in from the right side for the first goal of her UNC career and a 1-0 lead.
The Huskies, defending NCAA champions, answered in the 31st minute on a penalty corner, one of four they had in the first half and six for the game. Sophie Bowden redirected a shot from Roisin Upton to the right side of the cage and the ball got past UNC goalkeeper Sassi Ammer to tie the game at 1-1.
The tie extended well into the second half. In the 59th minute of play, Craddock carried the ball just inside the circle and sent a shot past UConn keeper Nina Klein for a 2-1 lead that would hold up through a hard-fought final 11 minutes of play.
The Huskies finished with 10 shots while UNC had eight, four in each half. The Tar Heels didn't manage to draw a penalty corner.
"I think we all feel good about gutting out two wins over the course of the weekend, but we still have a long way to go," Shelton said. "We'll grow and learn from this weekend. We've played the toughest schedule in the nation - we were already at the top of the RPI before these two games - and that makes us tougher. We're a little thin, but we're resilient and we've got to keep developing that physical and mental toughness."
Next up for UNC is a home game, on Friday against Virginia. The Tar Heels host the third-ranked Cavaliers for an Atlantic Coast Conference battle at Francis E. Henry Stadium. Game time is 6 p.m.
No. 1 UNC 2, No. 2 Connecticut 1
Scoring: UNC - Sam Night (Loren Shealy), 19:18; UConn - Sophie Bowden (Roisin Upton), 30:06; UNC - Charlotte Craddock, 58:59
Shots: UNC 8 (4/4); UConn 10 (5/5)
Penalty corners: UNC 0; UConn 6 (4/2)
Saves: UNC 4 (Sassi Ammer, 70:00, 4 saves, 1 goal allowed); UConn 2 (Nina Klein, 70:00, 2 saves, 2 goals allowed)
Records: UNC 8-1, UConn 6-3
UNC starters: Sassi Ammer, Loren Shealy, Kristy Bernatchez, Samantha Travers, Charlotte Craddock, Emily Wold, Nina Notman, Emma Bozek, Julia Young, Casey Di Nardo, Abby Frey
UNC substitutes: Sam Night, Tyler Powell, Rachel Black, Gab Major
