The No. 1 North Carolina field hockey team easily disposed of William & Mary on Friday afternoon at Karen Shelton Stadium, defeating the Tribe, 4-0. Senior back Ashley Hoffman led the way with two goals.
What happened?
Although the Tar Heels (20-0, 6-0 ACC) controlled the tempo from the opening minute, it took a while for the team to get on the scoreboard. It wasn't until the 18th minute when first-year forward Erin Matson broke the ice to put UNC on top, 1-0. Junior forward Marissa Creatore found Matson in the middle of the box just a few yards from the William & Mary goal. Matson deftly flicked the ball up into the top left corner of the goal for her 17th score of the season.
Seven minutes later, junior forward Megan DuVernois picked up a green card, but the Tribe were unable to take advantage of the opportunity, failing to even record a shot.
In the 29th minute, the Tar Heels added to their total on a penalty corner. Matson fired the ball to the top of the goalie box and junior midfielder Yentl Leemans tapped the ball to Hoffman, who fired a shot to the same spot as Matson's earlier goal to make it a 2-0 advantage. That score held at half as the Tar Heels also held the upper hand in shot count at 5-0.
UNC wasted no time in adding to its total in the second half. Junior midfielder Catherine Hayden took a deflected ball in the goalie box, turned and fired a low strike to make it a 3-0 game, with Creatore picking up her second assist of the match.
In the 51st minute, the Tar Heels converted on another penalty corner as Hoffman found the back of the goal yet again on assists from Matson and Leemans.
That score held as UNC continued to pressure its opposition defensively until the final whistle to collect its ninth shutout of the season.
