Carolina Falls To Top-Ranked UConn In NCAA Shootout

Friday, November 17

Louisville, Ky.

2:00 PM

North Carolina

(18-5)

Connecticut (NCAA Semifinals)

(22-0)

OT 4

OT 5

OT 6

North Carolina

UCONN

The Tar Heels finished the 2017 season with a record of 18-5 and the program's 22nd final four appearance.

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

November 17, 2017 | Field Hockey

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The Tar Heels played in the final four for the ninth straight year.

By: UNC Athletic Communications

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The 2017 North Carolina field hockey season and the Tar Heels' ninth consecutive final four run ended Friday afternoon with a penalty-shootout loss to top-ranked and undefeated Connecticut, 2-1 in an NCAA Tournament semifinals game at the University of Louisville's Trager Stadium. UNC finishes the fall with a record of 18-5, while UConn (22-0) advances to play in the NCAA championship game on Sunday.

After a scoreless first half, both teams capitalized on second-half penalty corners to finish regulation at 1-1. After neither team scored during the two 15-minute overtime periods, the game went to a penalty shootout, with Connecticut winning that 3-0.

"Congratulations to UConn," UNC coach Karen Shelton said. "I thought it was a great game by two outstanding teams. I'm tremendously proud of my team and the season we've had."

After winning the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship on this field just two weeks ago, the Tar Heels earned a trip back to Louisville for the program's 22nd final four trip in an unlikely season. With just one senior on the roster, Shelton wondered early in the year whether her team would even make the tournament, much less play on its final weekend. But the fourth-seeded and fourth-ranked Tar Heels earned the right to take the field against the top-seeded Huskies Friday, and first half was fitting for a game played in the hometown of Muhammad Ali. "I thought the first half was a bit of a chess match, both teams kind of punching and counterpunching," said Shelton, whose team had three shots and gave up just one to the Huskies.

The second half was a completely different story statistically, with UNC taking 14 shots and drawing 10 corners, but UConn answering with a banner day by senior goalkeeper Nina Klein, who made a season-high 13 saves.

The Huskies' goal came in the 42nd minute of play, on the team's first penalty corner of the day and one of just two that UConn would take in the game. Senior Charlotte Veitner deflected in a ball by Margot Colenbrander from the left post to make the score 1-0.

UNC continued to press for the tying goal and with 10:28 remaining in the game, it looked like the Tar Heels had gotten it, when junior Eva van't Hoog gathered the rebound after a save by Klein and sent a shot over the keeper and into the cage. But a video review found that the ball had hit van't Hoog's leg, so that goal was nullified. During the break while the officials were reviewing the play, Shelton pulled Tar Heel keeper Amanda Hendry in favor of an extra field player in an attempt to tie the score. While the Tar Heels continued to create offensive opportunities, they also clamped down defensively to keep the Huskies from scoring again, with sophomore Feline Guenther making a defensive save while UNC played without a keeper.

With 1:51 remaining, van't Hoog scored again and this time it counted. On the Tar Heels' ninth corner of the day, senior Gab Major inserted to van't Hoog, who sent a shot inside the right post to tie the score at 1-1. Hendry immediately went back into the cage and regulation ended in a tie, although the Tar Heels had a 10th corner opportunity with no time on the clock.

"The second half, I thought the Tar Heels kind of owned, even though UConn had a one-goal lead," Shelton said. "We certainly dominated the stats and we were able to get the equalizer late. Pulling the keeper is never a comfortable thing to do but we did it and it worked to get the tying goal and force the overtime. I was happy about that, and then I thought we controlled large portions of the overtime but couldn't find a way to score a goal, thanks to Nina Klein – she had an outstanding performance today."

In the overtime periods, UNC continued to threaten, with two shots in the first OT and one in the second. The Tar Heels drew a penalty corner in the first period and then had three in the second, while the Huskies had neither a shot nor a corner in the extra periods.

With the game still tied at 1-1 after 30 minutes of seven-on-seven play, the decision went to a shootout, with the teams alternating shots. Connecticut made its first three, while Klein made saves on attempts by the first three Tar Heels to shoot, launching the Husky celebration and turning UNC's attention to next season.

"We'll take tonight, be sad a little bit and then focus on next year," said junior Ashley Hoffman, one of the team's co-captains. The other co-captain, Major, is the only senior on this year's roster, with the rest of the squad set to return in 2018.

"It's exciting to know that this team will be back almost intact, but we're incredibly disappointed right now," Shelton said. "We had our chances today and all you can do is say congratulations to UConn. They found a way."

It marked the second year in a row that UNC and UConn have gone to overtime in the NCAA semifinals. Last year in Norfolk it was the Tar Heels who came out on top, winning 2-1 to advance to the title game.

"These kids are heartbroken they didn't advance and have the chance to play for a national championship, but they did everything we asked," Shelton said. "My staff did an amazing job this year and the kids were incredible. I told them this was one of the most thrilling seasons for me, in 37 years, with the nature of the team, the leadership, the progress that they made, the staff and how hard they worked. To get this team to this point and outplay the undefeated No. 1-ranked team in the country but not advance, I can't feel bad about that. I think this team was amazing."

No. 1 Connecticut 2, No. 4 North Carolina 1, 2OT, PS
Scoring: UConn – Charlotte Veitner (Margot Colenbrander), 41:41; UNC – Eva van't Hoog (Gab Major), 68:09; UConn – Team, stroke-off
Shots: UNC 20 (3/14/2/1), UConn 6 (1/5/0/0)
Penalty corners: UNC 15 (1/10/1/3), UConn 2 (0/2/0/0)
Goalkeeper saves: UNC 1 (Amanda Hendry, 106:29, 1 save, 1 goal allowed; Team, 8:31); UConn 13 (Nina Klein, 115:00, 1 goal allowed, 13 saves)
Defensive saves: UNC 1 (Feline Guenther)
Records: UNC 18-5, UConn 22-0

UNC starters: Amanda Hendry, Eef Andriessen, Cassie Sumfest, Ashley Hoffman, Feline Guenther, Malin Evert, Morgan Goetz,, Eva Smolenaars, Eva van't Hoog, Gab Major, Marissa Creatore
UNC substitutes: Meredith Sholder, Bryn Boylan, Catherine Hayden, Megan DuVernois