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With 3:20 left in overtime, Syracuse midfielder Laura Graziosi put intense pressure on North Carolina’s Paityn Wirth. Wirth kept control of the ball, her back facing the goal, but the Orange surrounded her with four defenders. 

SU’s defense focused on Wirth as she turned to face the goal, but UNC’s Erin Matson found space in the wall of Syracuse defenders. Wirth immediately passed to Matson, who found the back of the net. 

No. 11 Syracuse (8-8, 4-6 Atlantic Coast) lost 4-3 in overtime against No. 1 North Carolina (15-1, 5-1) on Sunday, the Orange’s last game of the season and their fourth consecutive loss. The Orange’s defense struggled against the Tar Heels, who found the back of the net four times on just seven shots on goal. All eight of Syracuse’s losses this season have been one-goal defeats.

The Orange have outshot their opponent 66-28 in their final four games of the regular season. SU also had 36 shots on goal, while its opponents only had 15. But the Orange have been outscored 9-5. The most egregious example was against Boston College on April 10, where the Orange outshot the Eagles 38-7 but lost the game 2-1 in double overtime. 

Through the first 13 minutes on Sunday, Syracuse limited North Carolina to just one shot. But in the final two minutes of the first quarter, SU’s defense started to break down.

Matson moved UNC’s attack down the middle of the field and took a quick step to the right, drawing three SU defenders on her. Matson passed the ball to Katie Dixon in the shooting circle, and North Carolina now had a three-on-one. The only Syracuse defender left in the circle was Carolin Hoffmann. 

Dixon passed to forward Hannah Griggs, who put the ball in the back of the net to give North Carolina a 1-0 lead. The Tar Heels scored another goal in the second quarter, but in the second half, the Orange started to come back.

Syracuse scored three consecutive goals in the second half, with its first coming only two minutes into the third quarter. The Orange’s defense limited shots as well during their run, allowing North Carolina a single shot in the first 22 minutes of the second half.

UNC’s singular shot came with just 55 seconds left in the third quarter. Matson again attracted three defenders to her, this time inside the shooting circle. She found Wirth, who got a shot off, but Emily Streib made a kicking save to prevent the goal.

The Orange were roughly five minutes away from upsetting North Carolina, which would have been the Tar Heels’ first loss in 14 games. But UNC was able to get a penalty corner and get into scoring range.

North Carolina worked its way into the shooting circle, and Matson scored again to tie the game up before overtime. In the overtime period against UNC, Syracuse back Eefke van den Nieuwenhof received a yellow card, giving the Tar Heels another advantage. Three minutes later, North Carolina scored, and SU’s upset hopes fell short. 

Published on April 18, 2021 at 7:13 pm

Contact Henry: henrywobrien1123@gmail.com