Miller's Golden Goal Gives Cavaliers Win at North Carolina
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Caroline Miller’s (Rockville, Md.) goal in the 105th minute gave No. 14 Virginia a 1-0 double-overtime win over No. 5 North Carolina Sunday afternoon in front of 1,418 fans at Fetzer Field and a nationwide television audience on ESPNU. It was the Cavaliers’ first ever win over the Tar Heels in 38 meetings between the teams (1-35-2).
Virginia improves to 8-2-1 overall (2-1 ACC) with the victory, while North Carolina falls to 6-2-0 overall (1-1 ACC).
“That win is as good as it gets,” said head coach Steve Swanson. “I am just so proud of the players, they played terrific. We were prepared and did all the little things during the week to get ready for this game. It was great to see them get rewarded in the end. We had a couple chances to win it in the second half and in the first overtime, but we kept on pushing and got the goal in the second overtime. This is a great ACC road win for us.”
The teams played a scoreless first half, with each side registering four shots. Each team had great chances in the second half but couldn’t convert. Anna Sieloff made a save on a Miller (Rockville, Md.) breakaway in the 57th minute, while Chantel Jones (Midlothian, Va.) saved a header by Brooke Elby in the 67th minute off the crossbar. Regulation ended scoreless for the second consecutive year between the teams.
The Cavaliers had the first chance in the first overtime as Gloria Douglas (Fayetteville, N.C.) had a breakaway chance that was saved by Sieloff. Jones answered with a key save later in the first overtime as Emmalie Pfankuch got in behind the defense.
On the first shot of the second overtime, the Cavaliers scored the game-winner. Morgan Brian (St. Simons Island, Ga.) played a ball behind the defense that found the run of Miller, who fired it into the corner of the net for her team-leading 10th goal of the season.
North Carolina outshot Virginia 11-10 for the game, marking the first time this season the Cavaliers had been outshot. UNC also had a 9-2 corner kick edge. Jones (Midlothian, Va.) made two saves for the Cavaliers, posting her fifth shutout of the season and extending her school record to 38 career shutouts. Adelaide Gay and Sieloff made three and two saves respectively for the Tar Heels.
The Cavaliers continue their four-game road trip on Thursday as they visit No. 4 Duke. Game time at Koskinen Stadium in Durham is 8 p.m., and the game will be televised by the ACC Regional Sports Networks (Comcast SportsNet in Virginia).
#14 Virginia 1, #5 North Carolina 0 (2OT)
#14 Virginia (8-2-1, 2-1) 0 0 0 1 – 1
#5 North Carolina (6-2-0, 1-1-0) 0 0 0 0 – 0
Scoring Summary
1. UVa. Caroline Miller 10 (Morgan Brian 4) 105′
Shots: UVa 10, UNC 11
Corners: UVa 2, UNC 9
Saves: UVa 2 (Chantel Jones 2), UNC 5 (Adelaide Gay 3, Anna Sieloff 2)
Fouls: UVa 7, UNC 13
Attendance: 1418
Caroline Miller Postgame Interview (Video)