With a spot in the ACC Tournament on the line, the North Carolina women's soccer needed a win to avoid missing the tournament for the first time in program history.
And on Saturday night, the No. 8 Tar Heels rose to the challenge, defeating Miami 2-0 in Coral Gables, Florida in their final regular-season match.
North Carolina (14-3-1, 7-3-0 ACC) dominated the game from the beginning.
About two minutes into the match, sophomore midfielder Megan Buckingham found senior forward Summer Green open in front of the goal. Off Buckingham’s pass, Green fired the ball into the back of the net for her seventh goal of the season, giving the Tar Heels a 1-0 lead.
North Carolina went on to control possession, and the Hurricanes (5-12-0, 2-8-0 ACC) were unable to respond to Green’s goal.
As the half went on, the Tar Heels created more opportunities, outshooting Miami 11-2 by the end of the first period.
At the onset of second half, North Carolina maintained its aggression, as junior midfielder Cameron Castleberry's shot in the 50th minute veered just wide of the goalpost.
But after Castleberry’s shot, the Tar Heels' intensity seemed to slightly dip, as they settled into a comfortable lead. Miami then began to build momentum.
With about 38 minutes left in the game, Miami’s aggression resulted in a header into UNC’s box to set up a shot for the Hurricanes. But the shot was deflected by the Tar Heel defense, and sophomore forward Jessie Scarpa cleared the ball away.
