Women's Soccer Shuts Out Weekend Foes

But fortunately for the Tar Heels, the Nittany Lion attack dissipated as quickly as the inclement weather.

UNC held off Penn State's early offensive onslaught and defeated the No. 8 Nittany Lions 3-0.

The win was the second of the weekend for North Carolina. The Tar Heels opened play in the Carolina Nike Classic with a 5-0 victory against Charlotte on Friday.

After a 25-minute weather delay, North Carolina found itself trapped in its defensive zone, battling Nittany Lion forwards Bonnie Young and All-American Christie Welsh. Welsh smacked a shot off the crossbar in the sixth minute.

"After the first 10 minutes when all the adrenaline settled down, I thought we did a good job of settling into our rhythm, a one- and two-touch game," said UNC assistant coach Chris Ducar.

North Carolina coach Anson Dorrance left the field before he could be reached for comment.

As the overhead clouds became less threatening, so too did the Nitanny Lion's attack.

In the 17th minute, forward Alyssa Ramsey scored on UNC's first shot.

Penn State goalie Emily Oleksiuk left the box to snag a loose ball, but a charging Anne Morrell headed it away and centered it to Ramsey, who scored.

"(Ramsey's goal) built up a ton of confidence," defender Danielle Borgman said. "It takes a lot of pressure off everybody."

The Tar Heels felt extra pressure because of the absence of two of their star players. Midfielder Jena Kleugel and defender Catherine Reddick played with the U.S. national team Sunday and will miss UNC's next three games.

But North Carolina's versatility allowed players to effortlessly switch positions, making up for the absent Tar Heels.

"Compared to last season we definitely have a much deeper team," Ramsey said. "And you feel secure knowing that you have people coming off the bench that can be just as good as the person coming off the field."

UNC's mixture of long and short passes, numerous substitutions and flanking moves kept Penn State off balance.

A second-half goal by midfielder Leslie Gaston allowed North Carolina to focus on their defense.

"(Gaston is) filling in for Cat Reddick in the center back and to have back-to-back shutouts like that is unbelievable," Ducar said. "She looked very comfortable and really solidified the defense against a great two-front Penn State."

UNC didn't allow a second-half shot until 17 minutes after the break. By that time the Tar Heels were firmly in control.

North Carolina sealed the victory in the 83rd minute when Maggie Tamacka used all of her 5-foot-11 frame to head in a corner kick from Anne Remy.

"We had chances to put them away and we did," Ducar said. "Our combination play was absolutely unbelievable. We can use that at coaching schools for highlight film."

UNC's offense was timely Friday night, but it was the defense that turned Charlotte's fans' cheers into jeers.

"We used Charlotte as a learning experience," Ramsey said. "We came together in the second half and that was the goal, to play like we played in the second half for the entire game (Sunday)."

The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu.