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North Carolina led Syracuse 1-0 with two minutes left in the second quarter as the Tar Heels earned a penalty corner. UNC had previously scored on a penalty corner, which seemed to be its only form of attack to that point. Ciana Riccardo lined up outside as Louise Pert stood tall in goal.

Charly Bruder, the NCAA’s leading scorer, prepared to attempt another forceful shot toward Pert. With all expectations leaning toward Bruder, the Tar Heels switched things up. Riccardo inserted the ball to Kelly Smith, who immediately passed it to Jasmina Smolenaars. The midfielder faked a shot and finally found Bruder on the other side of the attacking circle, who drilled it home to double the Tar Heels’ lead.

Bruder’s goal served as the game-winner as No. 1 seed North Carolina (17-0, 8-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) defeated No. 5 seed Syracuse (13-6, 4-4 ACC) 3-1 in the ACC semifinals. The Tar Heels dominated from the jump, as SU attempted just one shot in the first half while attaining zero penalty corners in the whole game for the first time this season.

Following a 5-0 victory on Tuesday in which UNC outshot California 30-2, it was clear the Tar Heels were clicking on all cylinders. Elite defense from their backline translated to fluid offense, mainly by the ACC’s offensive player of the year, Ryleigh Heck and First Team All-ACC member Bruder. Syracuse, on the other hand, relied heavily on its defense, which shut out Virginia in Tuesday’s quarterfinal matchup.

And as expected, Bruder was the difference in Wednesday’s contest. As the first quarter began, UNC immediately applied pressure on SU’s defense. Pert recorded her first save 40 seconds after the opening whistle when she jumped left to close an angle created by Sanne Hak.

Following Hak’s initial momentum, UNC found itself with another opportunity. Hak found Katie Dixon over the middle for a potential shot, but Dixon couldn’t handle the pass, allowing Syracuse to escape without damage.

As the Tar Heels continued to press Syracuse, Aiden Drabick and Berber Bakermans made vital blocks to keep the game tied. But with the amount of offense from UNC, SU’s stout defense couldn’t last.

An obstruction call on Bakermans gave North Carolina its first penalty corner attempt of the day. Bruder was not in the game, but UNC’s attack followed its first attempt with two more.

Blocked shots by Bakermans, Bo Madden and Phoebe Hall eventually silenced UNC’s attack, but as the first quarter was coming to a close, Syracuse created few offensive chances. The Orange found difficulty transitioning from midfield to their attacking third, constantly getting the ball stripped away.

The second quarter gave Syracuse a fresh start, but not much changed from a possession standpoint. North Carolina continued to control the ball, attempting six corners in the frame.

Syracuse finally found an offensive spark when Drabick put a ball on net, but it was saved by Abigail Taylor. That was SU’s lone opportunity as North Carolina pushed the ball the other way to line up for two more corners.

“For me, it was the buildup of the attack of what we still did, not so much of what maybe happened,” SU head coach Lynn Farquhar said postgame.

The first attempt was a forceful shot by Bruder, which was miraculously saved by Pert. Willemijn Boogert cleared the ball away, but UNC came right back downfield and, this time, converted. Bruder’s shot deflected off Madden, which allowed the ball to pivot right over Bo van Kempen’s stick into the back of the net, giving UNC the lead five minutes into the second quarter.

A kick save by Pert and four more penalty corner attempts for UNC left a lot of strain on SU’s defense. Finally, on their ninth attempt of the day, the Tar Heels extended their lead to two. A clean insertion to a fake hit by Bruder led the ball to Smolenaars. She found Bruder again, who put it home to score her 25th goal of the season.

The first half was dominated by North Carolina, whose constant penalty corner sequences gave the Orange trouble.

“UNC is one of the most potent attacks in the country. That’s a piece of what we were going to face,” Farquhar said. “Whether it was Bo, Lieke (Leeggangers) or Lottie (Summers), they all stepped up and stopped a majority of (UNC’s) opportunities.”

The third quarter went similarly to the second. Heck made her first mark of the day when she knocked the ball toward the net on a fast break. Pert made the save, allowing the momentum to move back the other way.

However, the Orange struck little luck, and once again, UNC lined up for a penalty corner four minutes into the third quarter. Syracuse remained with zero attempts at the time, while North Carolina had reached double-digits. A blocked shot by Boogert led the ball to Drabick, who played it off to Vivian Rowan for an attack. She set up a great look for Lana Hamilton, the Orange’s goal scorer from Tuesday, but Hamilton couldn’t corral the ball as the attack dissipated.

The rest of the game remained all Tar Heels. On UNC’s 12th corner attempt of the day, Syracuse transfer Pleun Lammers scored on a rebound from a Bruder shot. The goal extended its lead to 3-0 and left Syracuse in a constant come-from-behind approach.

In the fourth quarter, Syracuse finally got on the board with Sarah Smalley’s second goal of the season. A fast break pass from Hall to Drabick gave Smalley an opening, where she backhanded the ball into the net. Following Smalley’s score, Syracuse resumed its stagnant offense as the clock expired and its hopes for a first-ever ACC championship dissipated.

“This team played as a team and with heart. And I think they represented Syracuse very well,” Farquhar said. “That’s huge and that’s something that makes Syracuse so special.”

Published on November 6, 2024 at 4:22 pm

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