Matson Earns National and ACC Honors

Erin Matson's play in UNC's opening field hockey games has earned her national and conference honors. The sophomore forward from Chadds Ford, Pa., was announced on Tuesday as the Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Player of the Week and on Wednesday as the NFHCA National Offensive Player of the Week.

Matson had a hat trick on Friday at No. 7 Michigan as top-ranked UNC opened the season with a top-10 road win. After the Wolverines took a 1-0 lead, Matson scored three times in the second quarter to put UNC ahead for good. Her first goal tied the game at 1-1, and then she put the Tar Heels up 2-1. After UM tied the game at 2-2, it took Matson just over a minute to score the game-winner in what would eventually be a 4-2 UNC victory.

She added five shots (four on goal) in Sunday's 2-1 win over No. 8 Iowa.

It's the second year in a row that Matson has earned the league's first weekly honor. Last year she went on to be honored once more and was eventually named the ACC Offensive Player of the Year. A first-team All-America selection as a freshman, this is her first national player of the week honor.

UNC (2-0) opens its home schedule this weekend, hosting the ACC-Ivy League Conference Crossover at Karen Shelton Stadium. Action opens Friday at 2:30 with Wake Forest facing off against Penn. The Tar Heels meet Princeton at 5 p.m. On Sunday, it's Wake-Princeton at 10:30 a.m. and UNC-Penn at 1 p.m. There is no charge for admission.

Players Mentioned

Erin Matson

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