DURHAM — It took 22 tries, but in the 79th minute Friday, the No. 1 North Carolina women’s soccer team finally got the shot it needed to put away No. 2 UCLA.
UNC senior Crystal Dunn took a feed from Brooke Elby and sent a low shot past Bruins goalkeeper Katelyn Rowland, who warded off UNC’s 21 previous shots on the night and recorded seven saves.
Shot from 10 yards out, the ball found the low right corner and would prove to be the gamewinner as UNC (5-0) went on to beat UCLA (4-1) in the first day of the Duke Nike Classic at Koskinen Stadium.
“It was a great pass into my feet,” said Dunn, who tallied her fifth goal of the year. “I had a defender on my hip, and I remember just kind of maneuvering around her and shooting it low on frame.
“The keeper was really good in the air, and I feel like getting the balls on the ground was probably our best way to finish today.”
Dunn, who took six shots on the night, had nearly scored on two previous occasions — on a high shot into the right corner in the first half and with a nimble kick directly in front of goal in the second half.
Dunn wasn’t the only one cutting it close. Fellow senior Kealia Ohai delivered a long, powerful strike in the second half that just missed right, and she followed that up several minutes later with a ball just off the right post.
As a whole, the Tar Heels outshot UCLA 23-6, putting eight shots on goal.
“We’re absolutely ecstatic to be in this position, beating a tremendous team,” coach Anson Dorrance said. “We feel really excited to have escaped 1-0.”
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