No. 5 UNC women's soccer dominates Seton Hall in 2-0 win

The No. 5 UNC women’s soccer team (6-0) bested Seton Hall (2-3-1), 2-0, on Sunday afternoon at Dorrance Field. 

Led by the individual goals of junior defender Tessa Dellarose and senior midfielder Bella Sember, the Tar Heels kept their perfect winning streak in tact. This match marks the third game in a row that UNC has held the opposing team scoreless on their home turf. 

"We're improving and that we're getting better and better each game," Dellarose said. "And we're taking care of the little things and making sure we have lockdown defense." 

And in the first five minutes of play, North Carolina found a perfect opportunity to take the early lead. 

After the Pirate’s goalkeeper Anna Prawer saved Sember’s shot to the right, Dellarose rebounded the ball. 

With Prawer still recovering from Sember’s earlier attempt, Dellarose responded with a quick shot that went wide and to the right. 

Similar miscues plagued the Tar Heels throughout the first half after redshirt sophomore defender Emerson Elgin placed the ball too far to the right almost 10 minutes later. 

But UNC’s offense clicked in the 23rd minute. Off a corner kick, Dellarose approached the box from the right. Although a defender blocked her shot, Dellarose rebounded the ball and tried again with Seton Hall’s defense recovering. 

The ball barely passed the goal line before Prawer recovered it, but it was enough to give the Tar Heels the advantage. While the team recorded five more shot attempts before the half ended, North Carolina exited the half up 1-0. 

Following a weather delay that stopped play for over an hour, the Tar Heels opened the flood games in the first 10 minutes of the second half. 

Assisted by first-year midfielder Linda Ullmark, Sember tallied her third goal of the season to push UNC to a 2-0 advantage. 

Although the Pirates quadrupled their shot attempts in the second period, the Tar Heels led in shot attempts 23-6. With North Carolina dominating possession, Seton Hall only notched four shots on goal compared to UNC's 10. 

"Anytime you get a shut out, you should celebrate," interim head coach Damon Nahas said. "Most people celebrate the goals, which is natural. We also want to celebrate the little things."

With such a restrictive offense, the Pirates failed to find the back of the net during the entire 90 minutes. 

"Whether we're up a goal, we're up two goals, we're up three goals, or we're down two goals, it doesn't matter," Sember said. "We're gonna bring the same mentality. We're gonna bring everything we have every single game. No matter what."

The Tar Heels will look to carry the momentum into Thursday against Duke at Koskinen Stadium. The game is set to start at 7 p.m. 

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