
The Tar Heels celebrate Ciana Riccardo's first career goal, which would turn out to be the gamewinner.
Field Hockey Earns 1-0 Win At Wake Forest
October 15, 2021 | Field Hockey
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Ciana Riccardo's first career goal was enough to lift the North Carolina field hockey team to a victory over Wake Forest on Friday, 1-0 at the Demon Deacons' Kentner Stadium.
The No. 10 Tar Heels improved to 9-5 overall and 3-1 in Atlantic Coast Conference play with the win, while No. 15 Wake Forest fell to 5-7 (1-4 ACC).
"Any and every ACC win, especially on the road, is a good one," said UNC coach Karen Shelton. "I'm proud of our Tar Heels – we knew this was somewhat of a must-win for us and we found a way."
Riccardo, a sophomore from Downingtown, Pa., hadn't been credited with a shot this season prior to Friday, when she became the 13th different player to score for Carolina this fall . With just under 90 seconds to play in the first quarter, freshman Jasmina Smolenaars carried the ball to the right baseline and then passed back out to Riccardo, who spun and buried her shot to give her team a lead that would hold up through 46 more minutes of play.
The Tar Heels led 18-6 in shots and 5-4 in penalty corners. Freshman goalkeeper Abigail Taylor made two saves as UNC earned its second shutout of the season, both within the last four games. Wake Forest keeper Tori Glaister made eight saves and Lee Ann Gordon added a defensive save for the Deacons.
UNC was coming off the wrong end of a shutout, a 4-0 loss at home to Liberty on Sunday, making Friday's victory even more crucial.
"I don't think it was a particularly pretty game by either team but we found a way to score and we got a shutout, so that's a bright spot for us," Shelton said. "I thought we defended very well. We're working on connecting – we missed a lot of connection there – but at least we found a way to win. I'm proud of our team."
Next up for Carolina is a home game next Friday (Oct. 22) against Louisville. The Tar Heels will celebrate Senior Day prior to the 4 p.m. game.
No. 10 UNC 1, No. 15 Wake Forest
Scoring: UNC – Ciana Riccardo (Jasmina Smolenaars), 13:31
Shots: UNC 18 (3/2/7/6), WFU 6 (1/1/2/2)
Penalty corners: UNC 5 (0/1/3/1), WFU 4 (0/1/2/1)
Goalkeeper saves: UNC 2 (Abigail Taylor, 60:00, 0 goals allowed, 2 saves), WFU 8 (Tori Glaister, 60:00, 1 goal allowed, 8 saves)
Defensive saves: WFU 1 (Lee Ann Gordon)
The No. 10 Tar Heels improved to 9-5 overall and 3-1 in Atlantic Coast Conference play with the win, while No. 15 Wake Forest fell to 5-7 (1-4 ACC).
"Any and every ACC win, especially on the road, is a good one," said UNC coach Karen Shelton. "I'm proud of our Tar Heels – we knew this was somewhat of a must-win for us and we found a way."
Riccardo, a sophomore from Downingtown, Pa., hadn't been credited with a shot this season prior to Friday, when she became the 13th different player to score for Carolina this fall . With just under 90 seconds to play in the first quarter, freshman Jasmina Smolenaars carried the ball to the right baseline and then passed back out to Riccardo, who spun and buried her shot to give her team a lead that would hold up through 46 more minutes of play.
The Tar Heels led 18-6 in shots and 5-4 in penalty corners. Freshman goalkeeper Abigail Taylor made two saves as UNC earned its second shutout of the season, both within the last four games. Wake Forest keeper Tori Glaister made eight saves and Lee Ann Gordon added a defensive save for the Deacons.
UNC was coming off the wrong end of a shutout, a 4-0 loss at home to Liberty on Sunday, making Friday's victory even more crucial.
"I don't think it was a particularly pretty game by either team but we found a way to score and we got a shutout, so that's a bright spot for us," Shelton said. "I thought we defended very well. We're working on connecting – we missed a lot of connection there – but at least we found a way to win. I'm proud of our team."
Next up for Carolina is a home game next Friday (Oct. 22) against Louisville. The Tar Heels will celebrate Senior Day prior to the 4 p.m. game.
No. 10 UNC 1, No. 15 Wake Forest
Scoring: UNC – Ciana Riccardo (Jasmina Smolenaars), 13:31
Shots: UNC 18 (3/2/7/6), WFU 6 (1/1/2/2)
Penalty corners: UNC 5 (0/1/3/1), WFU 4 (0/1/2/1)
Goalkeeper saves: UNC 2 (Abigail Taylor, 60:00, 0 goals allowed, 2 saves), WFU 8 (Tori Glaister, 60:00, 1 goal allowed, 8 saves)
Defensive saves: WFU 1 (Lee Ann Gordon)
Team Stats
NC
WAKE
Goals
1
0
Shots
18
6
Shots on Goal
10
2
Saves
2
9
Corners
5
4
Offsides
0
0
Fouls
0
0
Scoring Plays

Ciana Riccardo (1)
Assisted By: Jasmina Smolenaars
GOAL by NC Ciana Riccardo (FIRST GOAL), Assist by Jasmina Smolenaars, goal number 1 for season.
13:31
Game Leaders
Players
Players Mentioned
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