By R.L. Bynum
North Carolina held on to the No. 2 spot in the NFHCA Coaches Poll released Tuesday morning after a 2–1 road victory Sunday over Old Dominion.
The Tar Heels (4–1), who have only lost to No. 1 Iowa (3–2 in overtime on Aug. 27), fell from nine first-place votes last week to three this week.
Carolina beat the Monarchs in their only game last week on the strength of goals from senior Paityn Wirth and freshman Charly Bruder, as sophomore Ryleigh Heck got assists on both scores.
Carolina gets another big test at 3 p.m. Friday (ESPN3) when it opens ACC play at Karen Shelton Stadium against unbeaten Louisville (6–0). The Cardinals moved up a spot to No. 4 after a pair of 2–1 home wins: Friday over Ohio State (which is up one spot to No. 17) and Sunday over Virginia Commonwealth in overtime.
Tied at No. 6 are Virginia and Syracuse (up one slot). Other ACC teams in the poll are No. 9 Duke (up four spots), No. 14 Boston College (up two spots) and No. 16 Wake Forest (up one spot).
Top 20
| Rank | Team | Record | Poll points (1st-place votes) | Previous | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iowa | 6–0 | 802 (35) | 1 | ― |
| 2 | North Carolina | 4–1 | 742 (3) | 2 | ― |
| 3 | Northwestern | 5–1 | 681 (1) | 3 | ― |
| 4 | Louisville | 6–0 | 642 (2) | 5 | ▲1 |
| 5 | Maryland | 6–1 | 626 (0) | 4 | ▼1 |
| 6 | Syracuse | 5–0 | 568 (1) | 7 | ▲1 |
| 6 | Virginia | 5–1 | 568 (0) | 6 | ― |
| 8 | Michigan | 4–2 | 515 (0) | 8 | ― |
| 9 | Duke | 4–1 | 460 (0) | 13 | ▲4 |
| 10 | Liberty | 5–1 | 413 (0) | 9 | ▼1 |
| 10 | Rutgers | 6–0 | 413 (0) | 12 | ▲2 |
| 12 | Penn State | 4–2 | 401 (0) | 11 | ▼1 |
| 13 | Saint Joseph’s | 4–2 | 346 (0) | 10 | ▼3 |
| 14 | Boston College | 3–2 | 284 (0) | 16 | ▲2 |
| 15 | Harvard | 2–2 | 274 (0) | 14 | ▼1 |
| 16 | Wake Forest | 3–2 | 226 (0) | 17 | ▲1 |
| 17 | Ohio State | 6–1 | 222 (0) | 18 | ▲1 |
| 18 | UMass, Amherst | 4–2 | 80 (0) | 22 | ▲3 |
| 19 | Delaware | 3–3 | 74 (0) | 21 | ▲1 |
| 20 | Albany | 3–2 | 45 (0) | 25 | ▲3 |
| Date | Month/day | Time/ score | Opponent/event (current ranking) | Location | Record/ TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August | ACC/Big Ten Challenge | ||||
| 25 | Friday | W, 3–2 | No. 16 Michigan | Home | 1–0 |
| 27 | Sunday | L, 3–2 (OT) | No. 8 Iowa | Home | 1–1 |
| September | ACC/Ivy Challenge | ||||
| 1 | Friday | W, 4–0 | Penn | Philadelphia | 2–1 |
| 3 | Sunday | W, 2–1 (OT) | Princeton | Philadelphia | 3–1 |
| —————————— | |||||
| 10 | Sunday | W, 2–1 | No. 17 Old Dominion | Norfolk, Va. | 4–1 |
| 15 | Friday | W, 2–0 | No. 10 Louisville | Home | 5–1, 1–0 ACC |
| 22 | Friday | W, 3–0 | Wake Forest | Winston-Salem | 6–1, 2–0 ACC |
| 24 | Sunday | W, 6–1 | Appalachian State | Home | 7–1 |
| October | |||||
| 1 | Sunday | W, 4–1 | No. 13 Saint Joseph’s | Philadelphia | 8–1 |
| 6 | Friday | W, 3–1 | No. 14 Boston College | Home | 9–1, 3–0 ACC |
| 8 | Sunday | L, 2–1 (OT) | No. 7 Liberty | Home | 9–2 |
| 13 | Friday | W, 4–1 | No. 11 Syracuse | Syracuse | 10–2, 4–1 ACC |
| 15 | Sunday | W, 4–3 | No. 18 Albany | Albany, N.Y. | 11–2 |
| 20 | Friday | L, 3–2 | No. 5 Virginia | Charlottesville | 11–3, 4–1 ACC |
| 27 | Friday | W, 2–1 | No. 3 Duke | Home | 12–3, 5–1 ACC |
| November | ACC tournament | ||||
| 1 | Wednesday | W, 3–2 | Semifinals: No. 4 Virginia | Charlottesville | 13–3 |
| 4 | Friday | W, 2–0 | Final: No. 3 Duke | Charlottesville | 14–3 |
| NCAA tournament Link to bracket | |||||
| 10 | Friday | W, 6–1 | First round: William & Mary | Chapel Hill | 15–3 |
| 12 | Sunday | W, 4–2 | Second round: No. 9 Harvard | Chapel Hill | 16–3 |
| 17 | Friday | W, 2–0 | National semifinal: No. 5 Virginia | Chapel Hill | 17–3 |
| 19 | Sunday | W, 2–1, 2 OTs (UNC wins shootout 3–2) | Championship: No. 2 Northwestern | Chapel Hill | 18–3 |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications
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