University of North Carolina Athletics

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Heels' Season Ends With 1-0 Loss To South Carolina
November 13, 2021 | Women's Soccer
CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina lost its opening round NCAA Tournament for the first time in 40 tries as South Carolina upended the second-seeded Tar Heels, 1-0, Saturday at Dorrance Field.
The Gamecocks (12-6-1) put away the lone goal of the match with 9:22 remaining as Luciana Zullo slipped a shot in the back of the net on pass from Lauren Chang. Heather Hiz had three saves for her fifth shuout of the season.
UNC outshot South Carolina 11-9 and held a 7-4 advantage on corner kicks, including a 5-1 mark after halftime.
"The amount of opportunities we had off crosses and corner kicks just adds to the frustration," sophomore Avery Patterson said. "We've had a wall in front of the goal for our entire season."
Patterson and Talia Dellaperuta led UNC with two shots each.
"We had a difficult time getting a clean shot on frame," UNC head coach Anson Dorrance said. "I didn't think we played very well in the first half at all. They created a lot more chance than we did and were being outfought.
"In the second half we fought hard and part of that was changing systems. We had many more chances than they did. I was very pleased with our effort and our domination, but this is a punishing game. We didn't get any easy looks, they made it hard for us and they finished a wonderful chance. We tip our hat to them."
Returning to action for the first time in 16 days, the North Carolina (12-3-3) had just four shots on goal in the first half and perhaps had its best scoring chance when Rachel Jones' free kick shot hit the far post late in the stanza.
The Tar Heels came out of halftime intent on finding the back of the net with three shots in the first 13 minutes, but the South Carolina defense didn't relent and turned away each UNC scoring opportunity.
Even after it feel behind, UNC continued to press forward before time expired to bring the season to an end.
"This doesn't change anything about our ambitions," Dorrance stated. "We're going to be a tough team to beat next year, even tougher the following year and even tougher the year after that. We're in wonderful shape with our recruiting class that signed earlier this week, but also with the group that's committed to us for 2023.
"I'm disappointed for my senior class that we were unable to continue to play."
South Carolina advances to play the winner of the Hofstra-Providence match next weekend, Nov. 19-21, at a site to be determined.
The Gamecocks (12-6-1) put away the lone goal of the match with 9:22 remaining as Luciana Zullo slipped a shot in the back of the net on pass from Lauren Chang. Heather Hiz had three saves for her fifth shuout of the season.
UNC outshot South Carolina 11-9 and held a 7-4 advantage on corner kicks, including a 5-1 mark after halftime.
"The amount of opportunities we had off crosses and corner kicks just adds to the frustration," sophomore Avery Patterson said. "We've had a wall in front of the goal for our entire season."
Patterson and Talia Dellaperuta led UNC with two shots each.
"We had a difficult time getting a clean shot on frame," UNC head coach Anson Dorrance said. "I didn't think we played very well in the first half at all. They created a lot more chance than we did and were being outfought.
"In the second half we fought hard and part of that was changing systems. We had many more chances than they did. I was very pleased with our effort and our domination, but this is a punishing game. We didn't get any easy looks, they made it hard for us and they finished a wonderful chance. We tip our hat to them."
Returning to action for the first time in 16 days, the North Carolina (12-3-3) had just four shots on goal in the first half and perhaps had its best scoring chance when Rachel Jones' free kick shot hit the far post late in the stanza.
The Tar Heels came out of halftime intent on finding the back of the net with three shots in the first 13 minutes, but the South Carolina defense didn't relent and turned away each UNC scoring opportunity.
Even after it feel behind, UNC continued to press forward before time expired to bring the season to an end.
"This doesn't change anything about our ambitions," Dorrance stated. "We're going to be a tough team to beat next year, even tougher the following year and even tougher the year after that. We're in wonderful shape with our recruiting class that signed earlier this week, but also with the group that's committed to us for 2023.
"I'm disappointed for my senior class that we were unable to continue to play."
South Carolina advances to play the winner of the Hofstra-Providence match next weekend, Nov. 19-21, at a site to be determined.
Team Stats
USC
UNC
Goals
1
0
Shots
9
11
Shots on Goal
3
3
Saves
3
2
Corners
4
7
Fouls
9
11
Scoring Plays

Luciana Zullo (2)
Assisted By: Lauren Chang
GOAL by USC Zullo, Luciana Assist by Chang, Lauren.
80:38
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
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