Nov. 29, 2008

Hawkins' Overtime Tally Sends Tar Heels To College Cup

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Sophomore midfielder Ali Hawkins made sure her third shot of the second overtime period found the back of the net in the 102nd minute as fourth-ranked North Carolina defeated 14th-ranked Texas A&M 2-1 in double overtime in the quarterfinals of the 2008 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament at Fetzer Field. A crowd of 2,686 on an unusually balmy November afternoon looked on as Hawkins' initial shot was blocked, her second effort was turned away off the goal line by Aggie midfielder Rachel Shipley and then junior defender Whitney Engen headed the ball down to the feet of Hawkins, who powered her game-winning shot from eight yards out into the lower left of the goal. The entire sequence took seven seconds but they were the seven seconds the Tar Heels needed to move on in NCAA Tournament play.

With the win, the Tar Heels improve to 24-0-1 all-time in NCAA Tournament quarterfinal games and the Heels now find themselves in the College Cup semifinals for the 24th time in the 27-year history of the tournament. UNC will play the winner of the UCLA versus Duke quarterfinal game next Friday at either 4:30 p.m. or 7 p.m. at Wake Med Soccer Park (formerly SAS Soccer Park) in Cary, N.C. in the NCAA semifinals. The Bruins and the Blue Devils play each other Saturday at 10 p.m. EST in Los Angeles, Calif., at UCLA's Drake Stadium, for the right to move on and play the Tar Heels.

Florida State's Season Ends With A 2-0 Loss To Notre Dame

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - The quest for a fourth straight College Cup appearance came to an end on Friday evening as sixth-ranked Florida State (17-3-3) fell to Notre Dame (25-0-0) 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the 2008 NCAA Tournament. The Seminoles batted the top-ranked team in the nation for the full 90 minutes but couldn't manage a goal for just the fourth time all season.

The loss was the first for the Seminoles since falling 1-0 to Virginia back on September 25, a span of 14 games. It also marked the first time this season that Florida State dropped a contest on the road as the Seminoles finished the year 9-1-3 away from Tallahassee.

Duke’s Season Comes To A Close At UCLA In NCAA Quarterfinals

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – For the second straight year, the Duke women’s soccer team’s season has come to a close in the NCAA College Cup Elite Eight as the 15th-ranked and third-seeded Blue Devils fell, 6-1, at second-ranked and top-seeded UCLA at Drake Stadium in Los Angeles, Calif.

The Blue Devils saw their season conclude with a 15-6-3 overall and 4-3-3 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) record. UCLA improved to 22-0-2 overall and will next face North Carolina in the NCAA College Cup semifinals in Cary, N.C., on Friday, Dec. 5. With Duke advancing to the Elite Eight for the second straight season, it was the first time in school history the Blue Devils have reached the quarterfinals in back-to-back years.