Hume twins highlight senior night victory for UNC men's soccer

North Carolina men’s soccer coach Carlos Somoano has always attributed the success of his teams to his system.

The players in that system might change, but the expectations don’t. Yet, two players have stood out in Somoano’s system time and time again: redshirt senior forward Tucker Hume and his twin brother, redshirt senior defender Walker Hume.

Saturday’s game against Virginia Tech (9-4-3, 2-4-1 ACC) was no different. In their final regular-season game at Fetzer Field, the Humes were directly involved in both of North Carolina’s goals in a 2-0 victory that clinched an ACC Coastal Division championship for the Tar Heels (11-2-2, 5-1-1 ACC).

“I’ve never taken any of these games for granted,” Walker said.

“Because you never know how many you’re going to get.”

In the 18th minute of Saturday’s contest, Walker headed the ball to Tucker in the box off a set piece. Tucker was fouled and earned the penalty that led to North Carolina’s first goal courtesy of David October.

Later, in the 87th minute, Tucker scored his fifth goal of the season and UNC’s second of the game. It was the goal that clinched the game and the Coastal Division title for the Tar Heels.

“It’s definitely special to get a goal on senior night,” Tucker said.

“Just for the occasion as well as the Coastal Division.”

But it hasn’t been an easy road for the seniors. This was the first season of their UNC careers that the two have been able to take the field at the same time.

The Humes transferred to North Carolina from Rollins College in 2014. Tucker came to Chapel Hill knowing he’d redshirt his first season, but the pair planned to play together in 2015. But an injury forced Walker to take a redshirt and sit out the 2015 season, putting that plan on hold.

Having finally teamed up in 2016, the Humes have become a dominant force for the Tar Heels — combining for nine goals and eight assists, which accounts for almost 25 percent of the team’s points this season.

“Obviously, we always had that self-belief in ourselves,” Tucker said.

“(But) this has been more than we could imagine, and it’s just been an unreal experience.”

But the field isn’t the only place the Humes have left their mark — they’ve also stood out off the field.

“We’re very proud to have them ...” Somoano said. ”(Their) presence, personality, commitment to our university has been fantastic.”

With the division title in hand, North Carolina will now look ahead to the ACC Championship. For Somoano, this tournament represents not only a chance for a trophy, but also a chance to extend his seniors’ careers.

“I want to keep this season going for as long as possible, so I get to be around them as long as possible,” he said.

“I’m not looking forward to the day they move on.”

@The_Belshe

sports@dailytarheel.com