The North Carolina men’s soccer team ended its season Friday night in Santa Barbara, Calif., with a 2-1 loss to Louisville in the NCAA semifinals.
On UNC’s third trip in a row to the College Cup final four, the Tar Heels (16-4-4, 7-0-1 ACC) were dropped from the tournament on a last-minute goal by Louisville’s Aaron Horton. Horton snuck a shot by a diving UNC keeper Scott Goodwin with just 51 seconds remaining on the clock for the win.
After a 0-0 score at the half, the Cardinals struck first after UNC’s defense deflected a shot on goal to give Louisville a corner kick. Austin Berry capitalized on the opportunity and headed the first goal of the game past Goodwin for a Louisville lead.
UNC countered with an assist by junior Alex Dixon, who played a ball to midfielder Stephen McCarthy. McCarthy found the back of the net on a header to tie the score at 1-1, where it would stay until the final minute of play.
Top-seeded Louisville remains undefeated, now 20-0-3, and advances to the College Cup finals. The Cardinals will play the winner of Friday’s match between Akron and Michigan.
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