Despite rainfall and relocation, the North Carolina women’s soccer team wouldn’t let the game slip away.
What was initially scheduled as a Friday night showdown became an afternoon slip-and-slide for UNC and Boston College. Because of poor field conditions and adverse weather, the Tar Heels' second ACC home game was moved off campus to Cedar Falls Park.
But the No. 1 Tar Heels weren’t bothered by ceaseless wind and downpour on their way to a 2-0 victory over the Eagles.
The UNC attack was sharp to start the game, stringing together passes seamlessly and raining shots at the Boston College goal.
After a display of tiki-taka offense, redshirt senior Alexa Newfield capped off a well-designed play by tucking a goal into the back of the net in the 16th minute to hand North Carolina a 1-0 lead.
“It looked like the (English Premier League),” said Coach Anson Dorrance of his team’s first goal.
The Tar Heels (11-0-1, 4-0-0 ACC) paired offense with defense, smothering Boston College (8-4-1, 2-1-1 ACC) in every third of the field. The Eagles took the first shot of the game about a minute into the match, but didn’t get another look at goal for about 50 minutes.
While UNC continued to generate opportunities, the team didn’t find the target often. But when Joanna Boyles did find the target, it was a stunner.
The junior dialed up a shot from deep and connected, sending a laser into the top right corner of the net to shock the Boston College defense.
