The air was crisp, the smell of the free pizza offered by the Virginia athletic department wafted through the stands and the sounds of the fight song rang through the season-high crowd of 388 on a perfect afternoon for a field hockey contest at the Turf Field. These pleasantries, however, were made moot for Cavalier enthusiasts, as No. 1 North Carolina took a stranglehold on No. 19 Virginia from the opening minute, taking a 3-0 win yesterday.
"They were very poised," Virginia coach Michele Madison said. "It took second and third efforts to get the ball from them."
Despite Virginia's win in Chapel Hill last season for the Cavaliers' first ACC victory since 2000, the Tar Heels (16-0, 4-0 ACC) were looking beyond revenge and at the bigger picture -- the opportunity to clinch a bye in the first round of the upcoming ACC Tournament.
"I don't think it was a revenge game for us," North Carolina coach Karen Shelton said. "We haven't had a bye since the league expanded with Boston College, so that was a nice achievement for our group."
Freshman Katelyn Falgowski got North Carolina on the board quickly in the third minute as she finished in front of goal after junior Britt van Beek found her behind the Virginia back. In the 19th minute, senior Heather Kendell found the boards when senior Alli Tanner sneaked a pass by junior goalkeeper Amy Desjadon. Senior Jesse Gey added a goal of her own off a rebound in the 62nd minute, bringing her team-leading point total to 34.
"They are the best offense in the country," Desjadon said.
The theme of the afternoon was North Carolina's domination of ball-possession. Spearheaded by senior Rachel Dawson, one of three Tar Heels on the U.S. National Team, the North Carolina offense featured ball movement from the backs to the forwards in a controlled attack, resulting in three goals on 16 shots.
"We didn't get it in the back because we figured they can't score from back there, so we'll just wait for them to come through," Madison said. "If we couldn't get pressure on the ball, then Rachel Dawson could pick her eyes up and look to feed a pass."
The Cavaliers (8-7, 0-3 ACC) attempted to fend off the Tar Heels with swift counterattacks and quick restarts to try to catch them out of position, but the Tar Heels' pressure was unfazed; North Carolina yielded just a single shot that came with the game already out of reach in the 65th minute.
"We have National Team player Rachel Dawson anchoring back there, and a great support cast," Shelton said.
Although the Cavaliers struggled to create opportunities throughout the game, they were able to make some defensive adjustments at halftime to keep the game close. After going into halftime down 2-0, Virginia managed to keep North Carolina scoreless for the first 26 minutes of the second period before the Tar Heels sealed the game with their third goal of the afternoon.
"I said [at halftime], 'Even if they run into the stands, you go with them in the stands, stay on pressure even if you go out of your zone'" Madison said. "That really helped, because it forced the ball-carrier to make pressure passes."
Where Virginia faltered the most was on its offense. Though the North Carolina defense certainly had a hand in Virginia's futile attack, the Cavaliers' weakest offensive effort of the year cannot be attributed only to the strength of the Tar Heels' back.
"We played a little too soft, instead of really breaking for the spaces and creating some width for our attack," Madison said. "We didn't do that as well as we've done in the past."
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