Curt Kendall

Sports

Durant Not Hurt by Short Week

By Curt Kendall | November 13

Staff Writer Darian Durant is a quick learner. Despite having a short week to prepare for Wake Forest because of the death of his stepmother, the redshirt freshman picked apart the Demon Deacon secondary on Saturday. Durant's 361 passing yards, 24 completions and four touchdown passes each set new single-game school records for a freshman. His 75-yard TD pass to Sam Aiken also was the longest pass ever by a North Carolina freshman. Ronald Curry held the previous freshman passing yards (304) and completions (19) records, which he set in 1998.

Sports

Martin Rebounds From Error

By Curt Kendall | November 5

Abby Martin experienced a wide range of emotions during North Carolina's 3-2 ACC Tournament loss to Wake Forest on Friday. Things started out fine for the Tar Heel sweeper. She helped organize a defense that held the Demon Deacons scoreless in the first half, despite allowing seven shots and three penalty corners. Then came the mistake. With the game still scoreless early in the second half, Wake capitalized on a mental error by Martin. While Martin argued a call with the umpire, Wake forward Jennie Shelton ripped a shot past goalkeeper Amy Tran.

Sports

Tar Heels Defeat UVa., Discover New Talent

By Curt Kendall | October 26

North Carolina field hockey coach Karen Shelton discovered two new offensive weapons in Thursday's nonconference match against Virginia. Junior back Stephanie Fuller scored her first goal since 1999, and freshman midfielder Laura Douglas recorded her first career assist as the No. 4 Tar Heels defeated No. 8 Cavaliers 3-0 at Henry Stadium. Fuller, who was sidelined during UNC's first 12 contests with a partially torn calf muscle, put North Carolina (13-4, 3-3 in the ACC) on the board in the 14th minute.

Sports

Cross Country Learns Lessons

By Curt Kendall | October 1

North Carolina's cross country runners faced some older, but by no means slower, competition Saturday. Several former Tar Heel runners returned to Chapel Hill to compete in the UNC Challenge at the UNC Cross Country Course. But they did more than just compete. In fact, the UNC alumni edged out the Tar Heel men by two points to win the five-mile event, while North Carolina's women topped the second-place alumnae by 50 points in the 5,000-meter race. "It's great to see them come back and come together and be a part of this meet," said UNC coach Michael Whittlesey of the former Ta

Sports

UNC's Offense Stalls in Home Loss

By Curt Kendall | September 27

North Carolina field hockey coach Karen Shelton wasn't at Henry Stadium Wednesday night to witness her team take on Wake Forest. But Shelton, who was in Arlington, Va., for personal reasons, called the press box 10 times for game updates. The news wasn't good. The Demon Deacons topped the No. 2 Tar Heels 2-0, becoming the first team to shut out UNC since Old Dominion did on Sept. 16 of last year. Maria Whitehead got No. 8 Wake Forest (5-3) on the board in the 10th minute, putting in a rebound from seven yards out.

Sports

Lineup Changes Pay Off for Field Hockey

By Curt Kendall | September 25

Kent State did more than defeat North Carolina 5-4 in overtime on Saturday. The Golden Flashes' five goals -- the most the Tar Heels have allowed since surrendering six to Wake Forest in 1999 -- forced UNC coach Karen Shelton to alter her lineup for Sunday's contest against James Madison. Shelton moved seniors Abby Martin and Carrie Lingo into the backfield, joining Susan Hayes and Alison Stewart. Martin replaced freshman Carey Fetting-Smith at sweeper, where Martin played her junior year.

Sports

Cross Country Plans to Combine Efforts to Notch `W's

By Curt Kendall | September 6

If Sen. Joseph McCarthy were alive, he might accuse North Carolina's cross-country runners of being Communists. They don't read Karl Marx before each meet, and their uniforms aren't embroidered with a hammer and sickle. But the Tar Heels are focusing on the collective good of the team, not on individual achievements, for success in 2001. "Our motivation lies in how the team does," sophomore Shalane Flanagan said.

Sports

Baseball's Lone Senior Leads Pitchers

By Curt Kendall | May 1

As the only senior on the North Carolina baseball team, Jason Howell stands out in more ways than one.You might notice something distinct in Howell's step each time he strolls to the plate at Boshamer Stadium.He gets ready to bat to the beat of Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby One More Time," which his teammates tease him about. And UNC's opponents can attest to how diverse Howell is.

Sports

Base Running Sparks UNC's Victory

By Curt Kendall | April 26

The North Carolina baseball team wasn't going to wait for something bad to happen Wednesday night against UNC-Greensboro.The Tar Heels grabbed an early four-run lead with some aggressive base running and staved off a late Spartan rally en route to a 10-3 win at Boshamer Stadium.UNC put pressure on the Spartan defense all night long.Third baseman Chris Maples set the tone in the second inning by challenging the throwing arm of Spartan first baseman Chris Mittendorf.Running on the pitch, Maples scored from second on catcher Ron Braun's ground out to shortstop to give North Carolina (

Sports

Duke Tops UNC, Wins Series

By Curt Kendall | April 23

Duke's baseball team claimed more than an ACC series victory against North Carolina at Boshamer Stadium this weekend.After breaking a 12-game losing streak to the Tar Heels on Saturday , the Blue Devils shut out UNC 4-0 Sunday to clinch the inaugural Carlyle Cup.Duke starter Justin Dilucchio and four relievers limited UNC (25-20, 6-12 in the ACC) to six hits while stranding 13 Tar Heels in the shutout performance.The victory gave Duke (20-25, 7-10) a 2-1 series win and the three decisive points in the all-sports competition between the rival athletic programs."I think we knew