Top-seeded North Carolina took an early lead on Virginia in their Final Four field hockey matchup on Friday, and went on to post a 2-0 victory over the Cavaliers at Karen Shelton Stadium in Chapel Hill.
UNC (17-3) and UVA (14-7) had split a pair of games earlier in the season in Charlottesville, both by identical 3-2 scores.
On Friday, the Tar Heels that struck first, with Ryleigh Heck scoring on UNC’s first shot of the game to take a 1-0 lead 6:49 into the match.
The Tar Heels added a second goal in the second quarter, with Sietske Bruning scoring on a penalty corner with 8:44 remaining in the first half.
The Cavaliers had a pair of penalty corners in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter, but both attempts were blocked.
UVA pulled goalkeeper Tyler Kennedy with 5:46 remaining to try to create an offensive advantage.
The Tar Heels had a penalty corner with three minutes remaining in the game, with the Cavalier defense blocking the attempt.
“Heart. Grit. That’s what I saw today,” Virginia interim coach Ole Keusgen said after the loss. “It’s something we have been very proud of and that we have done so well in the last weeks, so I feel nothing but pride for the team.”
Keusgen took over as interim coach when head coach Michele Madison stepped aside last month for undisclosed reasons to take personal leave.
That was before the team’s unexpected run to a Final Four berth.
“Our group is amazing. What we have done in the last weeks, the momentum that we carried, that just speaks for itself,” Keusgen said. “I think I personally would run through a wall for this team, and I think everyone else can say that for each other. That starts from the bottom and goes all the way up. We create that feeling that we’re here for each other, and that carries momentum. Obviously, we started a winning streak that made a lot of stuff easier. But what it says about those young women is that they are incredibly resilient and strong. We’re just very proud of that part.”
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Chris Graham
