RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina men’s soccer team (6-3-3, 2-2-2 ACC) drew on the road, 2-2, against rival North Carolina State (4-5-3, 1-4-1) in a back-and-forth contest.
What happened?
After a foul from junior midfielder Ernest Bawa just outside the North Carolina box, N.C. State’s Conor Kelly converted a freekick to make it 1-0 Wolfpack 12 minutes into the contest.
Following the concession, the Tar Heels went on the attack — spending much of the next five minutes in the attacking third before converting on a freekick of their own in the 19th minute. Bawa’s freekick attempt deflected off the hands of the N.C. State goalkeeper, before graduate defender Til Zinnhardt collected it and buried one into the back of the net to tie things up at 1-1.
UNC continued to control possession for much of the remainder of the first half, but the Wolfpack ultimately converted with five minutes to go to make it 2-1 entering the break.
North Carolina continued to control possession throughout the second half, but couldn't break through until the 64th minute when forward Akeim Clarke linked up with Bawa to bring the Tar Heels back even.
UNC continued to hold the ball in the attacking third and the Wolfpack earned chances on the counterattack, but neither side was ultimately able to break through for the remainder of the contest. As the buzzer sounded, the match ended in a 2-2 draw.
Who stood out?
Bawa finished with a goal and an assist, adding a goal involvement to each of North Carolina's goals. The junior did not have a single goal involvement to this point in the season, but his performance on Friday helped the Tar Heels break through despite a lack of real scoring opportunities.
