UCLA Women's Soccer Plays North Carolina for NCAA Title
UCLA Women's Soccer Plays North Carolina for NCAA Title
To win the school's 120th NCAA title, the Bruins will have to get past a talented North Carolina team led by a head coach who has won 21 NCAA women's soccer titles.
This afternoon, the UCLA women’s soccer team will take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in the NCAA Women’s College Cup Final.
The Bruins got to today’s match by beating Alabama on Friday, 3-0.
Meanwhile, North Carolina defeated Florida State on Friday, 3-2. In that match, the Tar Heels scored three consecutive goals, one in the first half and two more in the second, before allowing the Seminoles to make it a close game for the final 15 minutes. But the Seminoles couldn’t get the equalizer and the Tar Heels hung on to advance.
These teams have a little bit of recent history. On September 4, UCLA visited Chapel Hill and handed the Tar Heels their first loss of the season by a score of 2-1. In that game, UNC scored first in the 48th minute. UCLA’s Lexi Wright got the equalizer in the 61st minute and Reilyn Turner got the game-winner in the 84th minute.
That game was just the second time that UCLA has beaten North Carolina. The Tar Heels own an 11-2-2 record all-time against the Bruins.
Unlike the Friday’s game against Alabama, Carolina controlled most of the game back in September. The Tar Heels time of possession was double what the Bruins had despite the final outcome. They also took more than twice as many shots as the Bruins, 16-7, and they had 10 corner kicks to just one for UCLA.
The Bruins will need to play more like they did against Alabama than they did against the Tar Heels in September if they want to win today’s game as well as the national championship.
North Carolina has two players who look to dangerous near the net. The first is redshirt freshman Ally Sentnor. The forward has scored 10 goals this season, but five of those goals have come in the NCAA Tournament. In other words, she has been on a goal-scoring hot streak that Lauren Brzykcy and the Bruins will have to stop.
The other is junior midfielder Avery Patterson. Patterson leads the Tar Heels with 11 goals as well as points with 37. In fact, the tandem of Patterson and Sentnor are ranked 1st or 2nd on UNC in almost every offensive category. Of course, that’s not to say that no one else on the North Carolina team can score. The Tar Heels are the Yankees of women’s college soccer. They have won 21 NCAA titles under head coach Anson Dorrance. Dorrance also led the USWNT to victory in the first Women’s World Cup. So, today’s game is not going to be an easy one, but it will be a whole lot easier if UCLA can keep Sentnor and Patterson from scoring. If they can do that, the Bruins should bring home the title.
Here’s how to watch tonight’s NCAA Women’s College Cup Final.
NCAA Women’s College Cup Soccer Final
Opponents: #1 UCLA Bruins (21-2-1) vs. #2 North Carolina Tar Heels (20-4-1)
Game Time: 3:00 pm PT, Monday, December 5, 2022
Where: WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, NC
Live TV: ESPNU with Jenn Hildreth and Julie Foudy
Live Stream: WatchESPN.com
Live Stats: NCAA.com
Game Notes:
UCLA
North Carolina
Go Bruins!!!
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0-0 at half. Both sides pretty conservative in the first 45 min.
Dang, UNC gets a goal on a header from 6 yds out on a cross with 32 min left in the game.
BSPN "announcers" are deliriously happy.