UNC finds offensive rhythm

The North Carolina women’s soccer team’s season was always supposed to get better — just maybe not so quickly.

After starting the season 0-1-1 and without a goal, the No. 18 Tar Heels have won five straight games and exploded offensively.

And their best scorers have yet to return to action.

UNC played its first six games of the season without two of its top offensive players — Kealia Ohai and Crystal Dunn, who were playing with the gold medal-winning U.S. U-20 World Cup team. The players return to Chapel Hill today.

“It’s going to be huge (having them back),” midfielder Amber Brooks said. “We’re going to have a lot more speed. They have a lot of experience, and they’re used to playing our way.”

After UNC’s second scoreless game, coach Anson Dorrance said the team would have to learn to deal with a clunky offense without those two scorers.

Only suddenly, the offense wasn’t clunky at all.

The Tar Heels got rolling with wins against Connecticut and Notre Dame last week. This weekend, they followed those wins with two blowouts, beating No. 12 Marquette 4-0 on Friday and San Diego 5-0 on Sunday.

And for UNC’s next game against Maryland, Ohai and Dunn will be back on the field, just in time for the start of ACC play.

North Carolina has held its own without them due mostly to the efforts of freshman forward Summer Green, who has emerged as a dominant scorer.

In the Tar Heels’ current winning streak, Green has five goals and two assists — a stretch capped off by consecutive two-goal performances against Marquette and San Diego.

“At the beginning of the season, I was trying to nail the ball with no direction or any idea where I was going,” Green said. “I’ve really been focusing on staying over the ball and picking a corner (to shoot at).”

Green has scored in every way — from the left and right side, from long distance and in close, left-footed and right-footed. She has filled the gap Ohai and Dunn left.

But she’s about to leave a gap of her own.

Sunday was Green’s last game before she leaves to play for the U.S. in the U-17 World Cup. Depending on how far the team advances, she could miss UNC’s next seven games.

Dorrance said he hopes Ohai and Dunn’s two heads will be at least as effective as Green’s one.

“I know we’re going to go up an extra quality player on the field, because with Ohai and Dunn now we have two more quality players,” Dorrance said.

“Now whether they can come in and make up for the loss of a kid that’s had a phenomenal run for us is the question.”

Contact the desk editor at sports@dailytarheel.com.