By R.L. Bynum
After making the ACC tournament and NCAA tournament championship games a year ago, No. 2-ranked North Carolina is the favorite to win the ACC women’s soccer title and has three players on the preseason All-ACC team.
The Tar Heels topped the ACC preseason coaches poll, released Thursday, garnering 166 poll points and 10 of 14 first-place votes. Florida State, which beat UNC in the ACC tournament championship game last season, is picked second with 146 points and two first-place votes.
Virginia is picked third (139), followed by Notre Dame (134) and Duke (126). The Cavaliers and Blue Devils both received one first-place vote.
Carolina redshirt senior defender Maycee Bell, senior midfielder Sam Meza (top photo) and sophomore midfielder/forward Ally Sentnor made the preseason All-ACC team.
Bell suffered a season-ending injury in last season’s opener after earning second-team All-America and first-team All-Atlantic Region honors as a junior in 2021.
Last season, Meza earned third-team All-America, first-team All-ACC and first-team All-Atlantic Region honors with two goals and four assists in 16 games despite battling injuries.
After missing her true freshman season due to injury, Sentnor made the NCAA All-Tournament Team, first-team All-ACC and third-team All-Atlantic Region last season. She was second in the country with five game-winning goals and had a pair of two-goal games in the NCAA tournament.
Carolina faces East Carolina in its second and final exhibition game at Dorrance Field at 6 p.m. Saturday before opening the season Aug. 17 at Penn State.
ACC preseason poll
North Carolina (10 first-place votes) — 166 poll points
Florida State (2) — 146
Virginia (1) — 139
Notre Dame — 134
Duke (1) — 126
Clemson — 104
Pittsburgh — 103
Wake Forest — 87
Virginia Tech — 81
N.C. State — 62
Louisville — 47
Syracuse — 35
Miami — 24
Preseason All-ACC team
Maycee Bell, senior defender, North Carolina
Megan Bornkamp, senior defender, Clemson
Jody Brown, senior forward, Florida State
Maggie Cagle, sophomore forward, Virginia
Eva Gaetino, senior defender, Notre Dame
Hal Hershfelt, fifth-year midfielder, Clemson
Jameese Joseph, senior forward, N.C. State
Sam Meza, senior midfielder, North Carolina
Kat Rader, sophomore forward, Duke
Cristina Roque, senior goalkeeper, Florida State
Ally Sentnor, sophomore midfielder/forward, North Carolina
Amanda West, senior forward, Pittsburgh
One additional honoree because of a tie in the voting
| Date | Month/day | Time/ score | Opponent | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August | ||||
| 14 | Thursday | L, 2–0 | at Tennessee | 0–1 |
| 17 | Sunday | W, 5–0 | vs. Siena | 1–1 |
| 21 | Thursday | 6:30 | at Georgia | SECN+ |
| 24 | Sunday | Noon | vs. Rice | ACCNE |
| 28 | Thursday | 4 p.m. | vs. UNCG | ACCNE |
| 31 | Sunday | Noon | vs. Wisc.-Milwaukee | |
| September | ||||
| 4 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. Alabama | |
| 7 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. James Madison | |
| 11 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | at Virginia Tech | |
| 17 | Wednesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Florida State | ACCN |
| 25 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | At Notre Dame | ACCN |
| October | ||||
| 2 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | vs. Boston College | ACCN |
| 5 | Sunday | 4 p.m. | vs. Pittsburgh | |
| 12 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | at Duke | ESPNU |
| 17 | Friday | 6 p.m. | at SMU | |
| 23 | Thursday | 7 p.m. | at Miami | |
| 26 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | |
| 30 | Thursday | 8 p.m. | vs. N.C. State | ACCN |
| November | ACC tournament | |||
| 2 | Sunday | First round: Campus sites | ||
| 6, 9 | Thurs., Sun. | W, 2–1 | Semifinals, final: Cary | |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| 13 | Thursday | First round Campus sites | ||
| December | Women’s College Cup | |||
| 5, 8 | Fri., Mon. | CPKC Stadium Kansas City |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications
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