No. 11 Syracuse fails to stop No. 1 UNC’s undefeated season
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With under five seconds to go in the first quarter, UNC shot one last time on goal in a desperate attempt to add to its lead. Ryleigh Heck managed to get a stick on it and put it past Brooke Borzymowski, giving the Tar Heels a 3-0 lead heading into the second quarter.
In No. 11 Syracuse’s (12-3, 2-2 Atlantic Coast) 6-1 loss to No. 1 UNC (13-0, 4-0 Atlantic Coast), the Tar Heels completely dominated both defensively and offensively en route to a major win over the Orange. The No. 1 team in the country had no trouble scoring and kept their undefeated season alive against the Orange.
Both offenses started out strong, moving the ball across their respective offensive zones and through the defense. Penalty corners were plentiful in the first quarter with Syracuse earning two and UNC earning six. This is a result of quick transitions by both offenses, completing long passes and both teams working up the field quickly.
When Syracuse was awarded a penalty stroke halfway through the first quarter, the UNC goaltender made a mistake and illegally smothered the ball in the 15m circle. Laura Graziosi, who had converted the only other penalty corner for Syracuse this season, missed the stroke, which kept the lead at 1-0.
UNC then doubled its lead on another penalty corner as Borzymowski stopped the initial shot. But after the Syracuse defense couldn’t clear the ball, the Tar Heels pounced on the ball and scored.
The second quarter was full of UNC possessing the ball. With a 3-0 lead over Syracuse, the Tar Heels were in no hurry to rush the ball up and down the field and provide Syracuse with counterattack opportunities.
Instead, the Tar Heels were much more methodical with their attacks and really tried to pick apart the Syracuse defense. This led to UNC scoring its fourth goal of the game, where the Erin Matson assisted Heck to give the Tar Heels a 4-0 lead.
At this point Syracuse began to play with more urgency. The Orange worked the ball down the field with longer and more difficult passes to complete. Overall, UNC completely dominated Syracuse in the first half.
As the third quarter started, UNC completed yet another long pass into the 15m circle of Syracuse. Heck found herself on the receiving end of the pass and centered it to Matson, who scored an easy goal as Borzymowski made a poor choice in trying to shut down Heck’s pass.
UNC continued to earn more penalty corners as Syracuse seemingly had no responses for the UNC attack that was relentlessly applying pressure.
Syracuse began to get more and more sloppy. The clearing attempts were often intercepted and they made it far too easy for the Tar Heels to take the ball away from Syracuse players. Further, when they did make a few nice passes and gain entry into the offensive 15m circle, the UNC defense was able to stop Syracuse from even getting a shot off.
On the defensive side, what had been a very strong point for Syracuse up until this part in the season had an extremely poor day on the field. Time after time UNC offensive players made it easily past the Syracuse defenders and created goal scoring opportunities. The team with a nation-leading nine shutouts put out an extremely weak effort in defending. Syracuse gave up 20 shots and 12 penalty corners throughout the game.
Syracuse looked better in the fourth quarter, but it was more of a formality as UNC was well on its way to win. Charlotte De Vries assisted Eefke Van Den Nieuwenhof, but it only came after Heck’s third goal of the game extended North Carolina’s lead to six.
