Ahmad Al-Qaq's game-winning goal propels UNC past California

Graduate forward Ahmad Al-Qaq's game-winning goal against California on Saturday was an accident.

It was intended to be a cross but, by some stroke of luck, flew across the goal posts to lift UNC to a 2-1 win. 

But there is nothing accidental about the journey that led to Al-Qaq's goal on Dorrance Field.

After missing his last year of high school club soccer due to a senior year injury, Al-Qaq did not see game action in his first two years at UNC.   

“We didn't think he was ever really going to be on the field for us,” head coach Carlos Somoano said. “We brought him on the team as somebody we thought would be a good teammate in practice, in the true sense of a walk-on.” 

But without the distractions or pressure of being a starter, Al-Qaq stayed consistent in training with the team and Somoano, earning his role as a regular sub. 

Then came his junior year. In 2022, he started in four games and appeared in 15. Last year, Al-Qaq played in all 22 matches with the team and started five times. 

“Coming on and not getting the minutes early on, that kind of motivated me,” Al-Qaq said. “It also gave me a perspective. I wasn't just thrown in the deep end, I kind of got to start in the shallow end and work my way up.” 

When he was working to earn minutes as a walk-on, Al-Qaq looked to the older players on the team for leadership. Now, as a graduate student, he has embodied this value for the younger players. 

Junior defender Parker O’Ferral is one of the players who has benefited from Al-Qaq's leadership, and in Saturday's game, O'Ferral earned his first goal of the season off of an assist from the graduate forward. 

“Being one of the older guys, he's a mentor to all of the younger guys,” O’Ferral said. “He's someone to look up to.”  

Al-Qaq was a sub in the 26th minute on Saturday and immediately made an impact on offense for the Tar Heels, forcing a save by the Cal goaltender. Somoano kept him in for the rest of the game.

At halftime tied nil-nil, the head coach stressed to the team the importance of edge — the combination of urgency and execution that can make or break a game. With North Carolina struggling to execute on offense and Cal hitting its stride in transition, Al-Qaq personified that combo and gave the Tar Heels a final boost.

Seven minutes after a Cal goal put the Golden Bears up 1-0 in the second half, Al-Qaq made a short cross in front of the goal, knowing that one of his teammates would be there to take the shot. 

And they were. 

O’Ferral capitalized, heading the ball into the top of the net to tie the game in the 67th minute. 

In the 80th minute, grounding a high, bouncing pass, Al-Qaq took a few steps and then curved the ball to the left, hoping to connect with a teammate. Instead, he found the back of the net and secured the victory for North Carolina. 

Though likely in his last year at UNC, Al-Qaq is not done proving what he can accomplish on and off the field. 

“He has surpassed every expectation that I had and continues to surpass those expectations, not only as a player but as a student-athlete,” Somoano said. 

@BeckettBrant

@dthsports | sports@dailytarheel.com