GoHeels Exclusive: Five Things To Know As The ACC Tournament Kicks Off

UNC opens ACC Championship play Thursday against Wake Forest.

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

GoHeels Exclusive: Five Things To Know As The ACC Tournament Kicks Off

November 2, 2017 | Field Hockey, Featured Writers

By: Pat James

By Pat James

For a second straight season, the North Carolina field hockey team enters the ACC Championship as the No. 5 seed.

UNC, 13-4 overall and ranked sixth nationally, will face fourth-seeded Wake Forest at 11 a.m. Thursday at the University of Louisville's Trager Stadium in Louisville, Ky. The winner advances to Friday's semifinal game against top-seeded Virginia, which defeated the Tar Heels in last year's championship game.

Here are five things to watch for as UNC begins postseason play:

Corner concerns

Although they have a 137-56 edge over their opponents on penalty corners, the Tar Heels have been inconsistent on them this season, both offensively and defensively.

UNC has scored just 22 goals off its 137 corners. In the 3-2 loss against Duke on Oct. 20, the team failed to convert on any of its 10 corners.

"We've just been a little inconsistent with everybody doing what they're supposed to do at the same time," Shelton said. "It's still a concern. I don't want to make excuses for our group, but the fact we have less practice opportunities because of going over to Duke, it's showing up in these set pieces that require hundreds and hundreds of repetitions."

Shelton said she's seen improvement with the Tar Heels' penalty corners. But defensively, they've struggled.

Through 13 games, UNC ranked fifth nationally with a 0.99 goals against average. Since then, the Tar Heels have surrendered 11 goals over their past four games. Seven of those goals have come on 11 total penalty corners, resulting in a 63.6 percent conversion rate.

"Our defensive corners have been letting us down," Shelton said. "If we can tidy up that and just get tighter as a defensive unit and more intense, we won't give up as many goals."

Hendry's development

When UNC's corner defense has been steady, opponents have struggled to score on goalkeeper Amanda Hendry.

Entering this season, Hendry figured to be the backup to Alex Halpin, who appeared in 21 games last season and started 11. But Hendry seized the starting job during the preseason and has been one of the best goalkeepers in the country.

Hendry ranks 10th nationally with a 1.24 goals against average. Following overtime road wins over Syracuse and Albany, which she made eight total saves against, she was named ACC Co-Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 25.

"She got in there and played awesome," said Shelton of starting Hendry at the beginning of the season. "We couldn't do anything but play her she was so good. Hopefully she'll show up and make the saves she's supposed to save. We don't expect her to be miraculous; we want her to be solid."

'A dangerous player'

Despite ranking second on the team with 48 shots through 16 games, Malin Evert had only scored five goals entering Sunday's game at Liberty. But against the Flames, she erupted for a career-high four goals, tying her with Ashley Hoffman for the team lead with nine.

"She's a dangerous player," Shelton said. "You see how she can eliminate and go with speed. What she's had problems doing is connecting the next pass, and she did that against Liberty. The other thing we did is we've added a strike for her on the corner … She got a goal off one at least (against Liberty).

"I'm just really proud of her. Once she starts connecting, she's going to be a first-team All-American."

Evert's outburst perhaps couldn't have come at a better time for the balanced Tar Heels, who have lacked a true No. 2 scoring threat to Hoffman for much of this season. Catherine Hayden, Gab Major and Meredith Sholder are UNC's next leading scorers, but the trio has combined for seven goals over the last eight games.

A Wake-up call

Thursday's ACC Championship first-round game between the Tar Heels and Wake Forest marks their second meeting of the season.

UNC fell to 3-2 when it suffered a 3-1 defeat against the Demon Deacons on Sept. 8 in Winston-Salem. The Tar Heels' one goal, zero assists, nine shots and six shots on goal remain team lows. Since the loss, UNC is 10-2.

"We didn't feel like we played our best in that game," Shelton said. "Wake had the homefield advantage, and they always play better at their place. There's no question they beat us. To have another opportunity at them is a good thing for our team."

Staying alive

But even with a win over Wake Forest, the Tar Heels won't be guaranteed anything.

All seven ACC teams are ranked in the top 13 of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) poll. Virginia (No. 4) and Duke (No. 2), the top two seeds in the ACC Championship, are both ranked ahead of UNC.

Thus, Shelton said there's more parity in the conference than in past seasons.

"I think just looking at it realistically," Shelton said, "are we capable of beating anybody? Yes, I think we are. I think we're one of those teams. But I think anbody in the conference can beat any of us on any given day. And that's exciting."

Sitting at No. 4 in the RPI rankings, UNC boasts seven wins over teams ranked in the NFHCA poll. Because of this, a 15th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance likely awaits the Tar Heels, no matter the results of the ACC Championship.

Still, Shelton said a 20th ACC Championship title and the automatic NCAA Tournament bid that comes with it remain the priority.

"You want to keep your season alive, you want to keep going," she said. "An ACC Championship is important to us, so we're not going to be one of these teams that doesn't really care about winning it because you can rest going into the NCAA Tournament."