By Aidan Corley
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Revenge is a dish best served cold, and the North Carolina Tar Heels (13-6-0) were a group of assassins on the field Friday night as they defeated No. 3 Tennessee (12-4-3) 3-1 in the first round of the NCAA tournament, avenging their season-opening loss to the Lady Vols in the process.
“I felt it from everyone on the field, from the stands, and on the bench that we were going to win this game no matter what,” North Carolina defender Tessa Dellarose said.
The writing was on the wall as the two teams entered the tournament in contrasting form. Tennessee was on a skid of just one win in the previous five games, scoring just one goal in the process. North Carolina, on the other hand, had rattled off five wins from seven games, scoring 17 goals.
Tennessee’s fifth consecutive NCAA tournament appearance ended after the first round for the third time in that stretch. North Carolina improved to 26-1 all-time in first-round games in what was their first-ever road trip for a first-round game. North Carolina is the only team to compete in every NCAA tournament.
Kate Runyon’s sixth goal of the season opened the scoring in the 26th minute for the Lady Vols, but the Tar Heels responded just three minutes later through Kate Faasse and never looked back as they cruised to victory.
“It’s tough. You go up, you have the momentum and you’re feeling pretty good, and then they equalize and then all of a sudden you walk into halftime you’re down 2-1, but you’re not playing terribly,” head coach Joe Kirt said. “That three minute stretch is pretty frustrating since we played pretty well for the other 40.”
Lack of Urgency
For large portions of the game, the Lady Vols and Regal Stadium were devoid of any life. They came out slow when the game kicked off, allowing North Carolina space in dangerous positions around the box early. Olivia Thomas was a constant threat for the Tar Heels on the right wing.
After scoring the opening goal, instead of capitalizing on the lead, Tennessee was immediately put under pressure and was unable to defend balls in the box. Both of North Carolina’s first-half goals were caused by balls into the box that couldn’t be dealt with, and a Tar Heel was able to pounce on the loose ball in an unorganized Tennessee box.
At 2-1, the game was in the balance. If Tennessee were to score the next goal, it would have truly been game on again, but they came out of halftime with zero intensity, and Kate Faasse grabbed her second and North Carolina’s third off of a sloppy Tennessee giveaway just 12 minutes into the second half. At 3-1, that was essentially all she wrote.
Tennessee’s first shot of the second half didn’t come until there were just 11 minutes left in the game, and a lack of chance creation plus a masterclass in closing out a game by North Carolina ended all hopes of a comeback.
“I think it was a back and forth game in midfield… both teams defended really well with limited opportunities,” Kirt said. “Giving away the third one in the second half made it a little bit more challenging for us, and then obviously tried to chase the game a little bit and create some chances at the end. But you do that too early you open yourself up to their ability to counter… they’ve got players up there that can hurt you if you open yourself up too much.”
Tennessee managed six shots and five on goal in the last 10 minutes of the game in a last-ditch attempt to make things dicey at the end, but it was too little too late for the Lady Vols.
Regal Stadium and Vol Nation created a home-field advantage that had been incredibly effective for Tennessee all season, being previously unbeaten at home, but they were never able to get going tonight.
Same Teams, Different Story
The luck of the NCAA draw brought on a rematch for the ages. Tennessee and North Carolina kicked off the college soccer season with a bang, with the Lady Vols upsetting the then No. 1 Tar Heels 2-0 behind a brace from Shae O’Rourke, putting the nation on notice.
This time around, the reigning national champions let their championship pedigree do the talking.
Months in college soccer feel like years with how tight the schedule is, and when the two teams met in November, they had undergone lots of change since their first battle in August. Tennessee brought back an experienced roster and was ready to make a statement. North Carolina was a brand new team following their national championship run, filled with transfers, freshmen, and bearing the weight of the preseason No. 1 ranking.
Of the 22 players that started the first matchup for both teams, just 13 of the same players started Friday night’s game.
“We were a young team with a blend of some really good leaders, and we had a really good preseason. Our exhibition matches went really well, and we came here and to be honest with you we were just missing a little bit of that, I don’t really know what it was, there was just something missing,” North Carolina head coach Damon Nahas said. “I think sometimes the best thing that happens is when you go through some of the challenges… we didn’t have enough fight in that first game. They deserved to win that game and ultimately there’s motivation that comes from that.”
Historic Campaign Ends
The loss to North Carolina was a disappointing end to an otherwise successful season for the Lady Vols.
The victory over the Tar Heels in August was the program’s first win over a No. 1-ranked team in their history. An impressive non-conference that also included a top-5 win at UCLA saw the Lady Vols ascend to the No. 1 ranking themselves for the first time ever. Tennessee’s historical defense led by Ally Brown, Leah Klurman, and goalkeeper Cayden Norris tied a single-season program record of 13 clean sheets, and were at one point the only team in the country to have not conceded a goal.
It will be a season to look back on fondly for all players, coaches, and fans who gave their all for Tennessee.
“This program has probably been the biggest blessing in my life. The team, the culture, the coaches, it’s just everything you can ask for,” Mac Midgley said. “There’s been lots of ups and downs, but we always said we wanted to leave the program better than we found it. That’s in the thought process for all the seniors leaving…it was a special place, and I think the relationships we built all over the four years and the coaching staff, I think it’s just very special. Something I’ll never take for granted.”