By R.L. Bynum
North Carolina is the only undefeated Division I field hockey team in the country and is still No. 1, but it still isn’t a unanimous pick in the latest NFHCA national coaches poll.
The Tar Heels (9–0, 2–0 ACC) are top-ranked for the second consecutive week with 37 of the 40 first-place votes after getting 35 the week before. Maryland (11–1) moved up two spots to No. 2 but has no first-place votes, with No. 3 Northwestern (10–2) getting two and No. 4 Iowa (9–2) getting one.
In Carolina’s only game last week, it rolled to a 6–3 road victory over Liberty, which fell two spots to No. 16. Fifth-year forward Erin Matson notched her fourth career four-goal game in the match to push her career points total to 300, six shy of the ACC record.
Matson is the ACC’s co-offensive player of the week with Virginia’s Daniela Mendez-Trendler.
ADVERTISEMENTS
Carolina plays two ranked teams on the road this weekend, visiting No. 19 Boston College (5–6, 1–1) on Friday and No. 12 Connecticut (7–3) on Sunday.
UNC also is the only ACC team unbeaten in league play, with a half-game lead over No. 11 Syracuse (10–2, 2–1) and No. 6 Virginia (7–3, 2–1).
Other ACC teams in the poll are No. 14 Wake Forest (8–3, 1–1) and No. 25 Duke (4–7, 0–2).
Top 25
| Rank | School | Record | Points (1st-place votes) | Previous rank | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Carolina | 9-0 | 997 (37) | 1 | ― |
| 2 | Maryland | 11-1 | 934 | 4 | ▲ 2 |
| 3 | Northwestern | 10-2 | 906 (2) | 2 | ▼ 1 |
| 4 | University of Iowa | 9-2 | 849 (1) | 3 | ▼ 1 |
| 5 | Penn State | 9-2 | 829 | 6 | ▲ 1 |
| 6 | Virginia | 7-2 | 769 | 7 | ▲ 1 |
| 7 | Louisville | 9-2 | 719 | 5 | ▼ 2 |
| 8 | Princeton | 7-4 | 666 | 9 | ▲ 1 |
| 9 | Saint Joseph’s | 8-3 | 647 | 10 | ▲ 1 |
| 10 | Michigan | 6-4 | 624 | 8 | ▼ 2 |
| 11 | Syracuse | 10-2 | 540 | 13 | ▲ 2 |
| 12 | Connecticut | 7-3 | 533 | 11 | ▼ 1 |
| 13 | Old Dominion | 7-2 | 525 | 12 | ▼ 1 |
| 14 | Wake Forest | 8-3 | 489 | 17 | ▲ 3 |
| 15 | Harvard | 7-3 | 409 | 15 | ― |
| 16 | Liberty | 7-4 | 392 | 14 | ▼ 2 |
| 17 | James Madison | 7-4 | 382 | 18 | ▲ 1 |
| 18 | Massachusetts, Amherst | 9-2 | 353 | 20 | ▲ 2 |
| 19 | Boston College | 5-6 | 269 | 16 | ▼ 3 |
| 20 | William and Mary | 7-4 | 247 | 19 | ▼ 1 |
| 21 | Albany | 8-3 | 193 | Unranked | ― |
| 22 | Maine | 8-3 | 135 | 23 | ▲ 1 |
| 23 | Rutgers | 6-6 | 131 | 21 | ▼ 2 |
| 24 | Ohio State | 5-5 | 126 | 24 | ― |
| 25 | Duke | 4-7 | 83 | 22 | ▼ 3 |
| Date | Month/day | Time/score | Opponent (current ranking) | Location | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August | |||||
| 26 | Friday | 5–1 | No. 4 Michigan | Winston-Salem | 1–0 |
| 28 | Sunday | 3–2 (OT) | No. 11 Iowa | Winston-Salem | 2–0 |
| September | |||||
| 2 | Friday | 4–3 | No. 7 Princeton | Home | 3–0 |
| 4 | Sunday | 4–0 | Penn | Home | 4–0 |
| 9 | Friday | 7–0 | California | Berkeley, Calif. | 5–0 |
| 11 | Sunday | 6–0 | Stanford | Stanford, Calif. | 6–0 |
| 16 | Friday | 3–0 | No. 12 Louisville | Louisville, Ky. | 7–0, 1–0 ACC |
| 23 | Friday | 2–0 | No. 10 Wake Forest | Home | 8–0, 2–0 ACC |
| October | |||||
| 2 | Sunday | 6–3 | No. 13 Liberty | Lynchburg, Va. | 9–0 |
| 7 | Friday | 4–3 | No. 20 Boston College | Newton, Mass. | 10–0, 3–0 ACC |
| 9 | Sunday | 3–0 | No. 15 Connecticut | Storrs, Conn. | 11–0 |
| 14 | Friday | 6–1 | No. 8 Syracuse | Home | 12–0, 4–0 ACC |
| 21 | Friday | 3–1 | No. 5 Virginia | Home | 13–0, 5–0 ACC |
| 23 | Sunday | 6–0 | No. 9 Saint Joseph’s | Home | 14–0, 6–0 ACC |
| 29 | Saturday | 2–0 | No. 25 Duke | Durham | 15–0, 7–0 ACC |
| November | ACC tournament | ||||
| 2 | Wednesday | 3–1 | Semifinal: No. 8 Syracuse | Durham | 16–0 |
| 4 | Friday | 3–2 | Final: No. 5 Virginia | Durham | 17–0 |
| NCAA tournament | |||||
| 11 | Friday | 5–1 | First round vs. Delaware | Chapel Hill | 18–0 |
| 13 | Sunday | 5–1 | Second round vs. No. 9 St. Joseph’s | Chapel Hill | 19–0 |
| 18 | Friday | 3–0 | National semifinal vs. No. 6 Penn State | Storrs, Conn. | 20–0 |
| 20 | Sunday | 1:30 p.m. | Championship vs. No. 2 Northwestern | Storrs, Conn. | ESPNU |
Photo of Erin Matson courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications
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