Covering Carolina athletics beyond men’s basketball and football, with dedicated reporting on women’s basketball and baseball, in addition to covering other sports that rarely draw media attention
No. 7 UNC and No. 3 Duke earned very different 5–0 home women’s soccer victories ahead of their big clash in Chapel Hill on Thursday night. While Carolina got its win over 3–4–1 NJIT, No. 271 in the Massey Ratings, at Dorrance Field on Sunday, the victory for the Blue Devils (7–0–1) a few miles away in Durham was over No. 1 Stanford for their fifth consecutive victory.
CHAPEL HILL — After a far-flung two-week road trip over nine time zones and thousands of miles, No. 7 North Carolina was happy to play at Dorrance Field for the first time in 18 days. They went to Dublin, then to Arizona, with stops in Tucson and Tempe, so the Tar Heels wouldn’t have been blamed if they were exhausted after winning all three matches. But after four days in Chapel Hill to recharge, UNC eased to a 3–0 victory Thursday night over California in the ACC opener for both teams.
After thousands of miles of travel that included a trip to Dublin and a pair of victories in Arizona, No. 9 North Carolina finally heads home. The Tar Heels closed out the road trip with stingy defense and a clutch penalty kick, escaping a match they controlled all day with a 1–0 victory Sunday over Arizona State at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz.
CHAPEL HILL — No. 7 North Carolina’s first major challenge of the season against No. 5 Michigan State presented a mixed bag, with impressive stretches and frustrating moments. UNC dominated every offensive category except goals, producing a lot of scrappy play and getting to most of the loose balls on a hot day of attrition.
For the third time in three matches, No. 7 North Carolina jumped out to an early lead and, just like the earlier two surges, the opponent never recovered.
After a pair of dominant victories to start the season, North Carolina moved up one spot in the United Soccer Coaches women’s soccer Top 25 to No. 7 and sophomore forward Bella Devey is the ACC Offensive Player of the Week. Devey notched a brace in the Tar Heels’ 4–0 opening-match victory Thursday over Fairfield and produced a hat trick in Sunday’s 8–0 thrashing of Quinnipiac. With team-leading five goals, she’s already matched her total last season and leads the team with 10 points.
CHAPEL HILL — The focal point for No. 8 North Carolina is clear, at least through two matches. As the striker in the 3–2–4–1 formation, sophomore Bella Devey has already equaled her goal total from last season. She followed up a brace in the opener with a hat trick in the first 14½ minutes of the Tar Heels’ dominant 8–0 victory Sunday over Quinnipiac.
CHAPEL HILL — Thunder from the back line ignited No. 8 Carolina to an impressive opening-night victory. Two sophomores delivered braces and nearly hat tricks as the Tar Heels cruised to a 4–0 women’s soccer victory Thursday over Fairfield at Dorrance Field in the opener for both teams.
CHAPEL HILL — No. 3 Carolina continued its unyielding defensive ways and turned up the offense to match Sunday, thanks to one of the heralded members of the Tar Heels’ No. 1-ranked freshman class. Midfielder Evelyn Shores, playing in only her second game since recovering from an injury, came off the bench to earn a brace with two second-half goals in less than 2½ minutes and spark the Tar Heels’ 4–0 rout of No. 24 USC on a hot afternoon at Dorrance Field.
CHAPEL HILL — The scoring chances kept coming for No. 3 Carolina down the stretch. But a player wearing light blue denied the Tar Heels repeatedly. The Tar Heels played well and were unrelenting on defense. But Wisconsin fifth-year goalkeeper Erin McKinney, clad in shorts and a jersey that were light blue, made terrific saves all afternoon as the teams played to a scoreless draw on a steamy Thursday afternoon at Dorrance Field.
North Carolina fell one spot to No. 3 in the latest United Soccer Coaches women’s Top 25 on Tuesday, but star freshman center back Savy King in ACC Defensive Player of the Week. The Tar Heels (1–0–1) played Penn State (1–0–1) to a scoreless draw Thursday before knocking off Cal 3–1 in their home opener on Sunday. The Nittany Lions moved up two spots to No. 8.
CHAPEL HILL — Carolina’s freshmen haven’t taken long to prove they’re worthy of being ranked the country’s No. 1 group in the class. Two freshmen, Melina Rebimbas and Olivia Thomas, scored their first college goals and another, Mia Oliaro, added an assist to lead No. 2 North Carolina to a 3–1 victory Sunday over Cal at Dorrance Field in its home opener.
CHAPEL HILL — When Anson Dorrance knows his Carolina women’s soccer team is one of the best in the country, he has a history of putting together a schedule that challenges his players. He took that to extremes 31 years ago for a team that included Mia Hamm and Christine Lilly, stacking four games in four days on the West Coast.
CHAPEL HILL — After last season ended in heartbreak, the No. 2-ranked Carolina women’s soccer team reloaded with the nation’s top freshman class, and the Tar Heels are poised to make another College Cup run with an “extra chip” on their shoulders. You won’t have to convince East Carolina, which could never get much going Saturday night at Dorrance Field. ACC favorite Carolina coasted to a 2–0 win in both teams’ second and final exhibition match, outshooting the Pirates 20–3.
