GoHeels Exclusive: Not Just Another Game

Ru Mucherera, Lois Joel, Alexis Strickland
University of North Carolina Women's Soccer v Florida State
Dorrance Field
Chapel Hill, NC
Thursday, October 24, 2019

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

October 25, 2019 | Women's Soccer, Featured Writers

An intense atmosphere at Dorrance Field sparked a Tar Heel win.

By: Pat James

By Pat James, GoHeels.com

This, by no means, was just another game, and Anson Dorrance wasn't going to treat it as such.

Almost a year has passed since the North Carolina women's soccer team fell to Florida State in the 2018 ACC Tournament final. Even now, that 3-2 loss still stings. Yet, the images from it aren't nearly as ingrained in the minds of Dorrance's players as those from their 1-0 defeat against the Seminoles in the 2018 NCAA championship game.

Only a national title will likely alleviate the pain the Tar Heels have experienced since then. But Thursday's meeting with Florida State, the first since that fateful day last December, gave them the chance to exact some measure of revenge.

Most coaches would downplay such a narrative. As has long been established, though, Dorrance isn't like most coaches. He instead encouraged his players to treat the contest different than most.

"Everyone can sort of pretend like this is just another game, but it's just stupid to say those things publicly. …" Dorrance said. "I just can't believe it when people say, 'Oh, no, this is just another game.' No, you don't want these games to be just another game.

"Hell, we were boiling over with passion in the pregame. I was just hoping that we'd have some energy left for the freakin' game."

Ultimately, they proved to have more than enough.

Behind a pair of second-half goals by Ru Mucherera and Brianna Pinto, third-ranked UNC blanked fifth-ranked Florida State 2-0 at Dorrance Field. The victory broke the Seminoles' two-game winning streak against Carolina. It also snapped a string of 14 consecutive games in the series that had been decided by one goal or ended in a tie.

But most importantly, it helped the Tar Heels (14-1-1, 7-0-1 ACC) move that much closer to claiming their 23rd ACC regular-season championship and second in a row.

"From my perspective," Dorrance said, "we checked all the boxes today."

UNC dominated possession in the first half and, despite being called offside seven times, created several scoring chances. None were more threatening than Pinto's shot from the top of the penalty area in the 13th minute and Maycee Bell's header moments later. But the former bounced off the crossbar and the latter off the right post. Eventually, the teams entered halftime scoreless.

As the game wore on, it became much more wide open. And with each missed opportunity on offense, it felt as if Florida State would capitalize, just as it did in December.

"We really just lost that game," said Mucherera of the national championship. "It was in our hands, and we let it slip away."

The redshirt senior ensured that didn't happen again.

In the 76th minute, Lotte Wubben-Moy lofted a long pass from Carolina's defensive third over the Seminoles' defensive line. Mucherera split between the center and right backs and ran on to the ball. Suddenly, she found herself one-on-one with goalie Caroline Jeffers.

With a deft touch, Mucherera set herself up for the strike. She then drove the ball toward the bottom right corner, and before it even settled in the back of the net, she took off down the field, waving her arms and imploring the crowd of 3,021 fans to get loud as Petey Pablo's "Raise Up" blasted over the speakers.

Pinto followed suit less than seven minutes later. The sophomore intercepted a pass near midfield and dribbled 45 yards before depositing the ball into almost the same spot as Mucherera. Given the nature of both goals, she said UNC's depth wore Florida State down.

"This team is so deep and we have so many people who step up in big moments," Pinto said. "And it's what makes it incredible about being part of the University of North Carolina women's soccer program. I'm so incredibly proud of our reserves – what we call our game changers – because they bring the energy. And they really killed Florida State's heart."

Dorrance also praised the reserves, specifically Mucherera, Zoe Redei and Madison Schultz. On a night when the Seminoles tallied the most shots (14) by any opponent this season, he took the time to recognize the defense and his goalkeepers, Claudia Dickey and Marz Josephson.

"This was a fantastic game with a great crowd on a wonderful evening," Dorrance said. "And I'm just excited about where my team is. Trust me, we're going to see them again. Knowing (Florida State head coach) Mark (Krikorian), he'll have an idea; he'll have seen something that I've overlooked and he'll figure out a way to beat us. So, this won't be the last time we see a great team like Florida State this year."

Recent history suggests Dorrance is right. In each of the last four seasons, the Tar Heels and Seminoles have met at least two times, including five times in the postseason.

With two games left in the regular season, Carolina sits atop the ACC standings with 22 points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie). Virginia and Florida State are tied for second with 18 points, four more than fourth-place Louisville. Barring any drastic changes, that means UNC's next potential game with Florida State won't likely be until the ACC Tournament final.

Because of how last season ended, a win over the Seminoles then – or even in the NCAA Tournament – would be more meaningful than Thursday's. But that doesn't make it any less significant.

"It hurt last year to lose to them twice, even after we beat them in the regular season," Pinto said. "In the grand scheme of things, this doesn't mean anything; we have to continue winning. But we're proud to get the result and we're going to get back to work and work even harder for the end of the season."