Friday, November 20
Clemson, S.C.
2:30 PM
Texas A&M
17-6-1
1
vs
0
North Carolina
15-5-1
1
2
F
Texas A&M
1
0
1
North Carolina
0
0
0
Photo by: Dawson Powers/Clemson Athletics
Aggies Advance to Sweet 16, Topple No. 8 UNC, 1-0
Nov 20, 2015 | Soccer
CLEMSON, South Carolina – The No. 21 Texas A&M Aggies upended the No. 8 North Carolina Tar Heels, 1-0, Friday afternoon in an NCAA Championship second round contest at Riggs Field. With the victory, the Aggies advance to their 14th Sweet Sixteen.
Texas A&M handed the Tar Heels just their 11th loss all-time in NCAA Championship play and sent North Carolina home before the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in the 34-year history of the tournament. The 21-time NCAA champion had made it to the Sweet Sixteen every season the NCAA has sponsored a Division I Women's Soccer Championship (since 1982).
The Aggies scored the match's lone goal in the 28th minute. Stephanie Malherbe served a long ball to Ally Watt, but a North Carolina defender corralled it just outside the left elbow of the penalty box. Watt wrangled the ball away from the Tar Heel backline and charged into the box. The mercurial forward sent a sharp cross to the right post. Emily Bates, sprinting towards the goal, distracted the keeper with her dummy run allowing Watt's ball to bounce unabated into the right side netting.
Danielle Rice notched her third career Aggie shutout as the backline wall of Karlie Mueller, Kendall Ritchie, Ashlynn Harryman, Margaret Schmidt, McKayla Paulson and Grace Wright and midfield help from Emily Bates, Kate Hajdu, Mikaela Harvey and Malherbe held the Tar Heels to just three shots-on-goal for the match and Rice, who also grabbed seven corners and crosses out of the air, made solid saves on all three offerings.
North Carolina owned advantages in shots (14-7) and corner kicks (5-0), but the Aggies earned the edges in shots-on-goal (4-3) and the scoreboard.
The Tar Heels' best scoring chance came with 33 minutes remaining in the second half when Alexa Newfield hit the left post from 10 yards out. But the Aggies' defense quickly pounced on the carom and cleared it to the midfield.
Watt nearly tacked on a second goal on two occasions in the second half. With 30 minutes remaining, she beat three defenders around the right flank and sent a ball across the face of the goal from eight yards out going just a foot wide to the left. With 13 minutes remaining, Watt chased down a long ball, beat one defender, and struck a ball from the right edge of the penalty box that goalkeeper Lindsay Harris had to make a leaping save to keep from going to the left upper 90.
The Aggies return to action on Sunday when they battle either Clemson or Ole Miss in a 12 pm Central match in an effort to earn their sixth Elite Eight appearance.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach G Guerrieri
On the match…
"This says a lot about the types of kids we have on this team. They're a team that can step up to a big occasion. It's great to get another win in the NCAA tournament and this one came against a legendary program – a North Carolina program that we obviously we have the most respect for. What Anson Dorrance has done for women's soccer is amazing. So this was a huge win for us. This is a Sweet 16 spot we've really had to battle for, so it's special. Fourteen times we've been here, now we have to regroup, see who we will play against and try to get to the Elite Eight."
On getting ready for the next round…
"I told the players, afterward, to enjoy this. It was a fantastic effort. We got a really good goal by Ally Watt with the run-over by Emily Bates. Dani (Rice), the backline, the midfield, everybody from front to back did a good job of winning balls and making North Carolina fight for everything. I don't know what else to say but 'We're smiling inside.' No matter who we play on Sunday, we know we have a tough task, so we'll enjoy this tonight and then tomorrow it's time to get our mind in the right place for the next match."
Freshman forward Ally Watt
On advancing to the next round…
"It's great to advance to next round, especially beating a team like North Carolina. They're legendary. We came in with the mentality that we can beat them and we did."
On her goal…
"Stephanie (Malherbe) served a ball over the top. The defender got it, but I just fought to get it from her. I tried to cross the ball in, but it found the side netting with that dummy from Emily Bates, distracting the keeper. A goal's a goal and it was great to be on top. Then we just had to fight them off the rest of the game. They were pretty relentless, but I'm pretty proud of the way Dani (Rice) and the backline played. They were huge."
Texas A&M handed the Tar Heels just their 11th loss all-time in NCAA Championship play and sent North Carolina home before the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in the 34-year history of the tournament. The 21-time NCAA champion had made it to the Sweet Sixteen every season the NCAA has sponsored a Division I Women's Soccer Championship (since 1982).
The Aggies scored the match's lone goal in the 28th minute. Stephanie Malherbe served a long ball to Ally Watt, but a North Carolina defender corralled it just outside the left elbow of the penalty box. Watt wrangled the ball away from the Tar Heel backline and charged into the box. The mercurial forward sent a sharp cross to the right post. Emily Bates, sprinting towards the goal, distracted the keeper with her dummy run allowing Watt's ball to bounce unabated into the right side netting.
Danielle Rice notched her third career Aggie shutout as the backline wall of Karlie Mueller, Kendall Ritchie, Ashlynn Harryman, Margaret Schmidt, McKayla Paulson and Grace Wright and midfield help from Emily Bates, Kate Hajdu, Mikaela Harvey and Malherbe held the Tar Heels to just three shots-on-goal for the match and Rice, who also grabbed seven corners and crosses out of the air, made solid saves on all three offerings.
North Carolina owned advantages in shots (14-7) and corner kicks (5-0), but the Aggies earned the edges in shots-on-goal (4-3) and the scoreboard.
The Tar Heels' best scoring chance came with 33 minutes remaining in the second half when Alexa Newfield hit the left post from 10 yards out. But the Aggies' defense quickly pounced on the carom and cleared it to the midfield.
Watt nearly tacked on a second goal on two occasions in the second half. With 30 minutes remaining, she beat three defenders around the right flank and sent a ball across the face of the goal from eight yards out going just a foot wide to the left. With 13 minutes remaining, Watt chased down a long ball, beat one defender, and struck a ball from the right edge of the penalty box that goalkeeper Lindsay Harris had to make a leaping save to keep from going to the left upper 90.
The Aggies return to action on Sunday when they battle either Clemson or Ole Miss in a 12 pm Central match in an effort to earn their sixth Elite Eight appearance.
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach G Guerrieri
On the match…
"This says a lot about the types of kids we have on this team. They're a team that can step up to a big occasion. It's great to get another win in the NCAA tournament and this one came against a legendary program – a North Carolina program that we obviously we have the most respect for. What Anson Dorrance has done for women's soccer is amazing. So this was a huge win for us. This is a Sweet 16 spot we've really had to battle for, so it's special. Fourteen times we've been here, now we have to regroup, see who we will play against and try to get to the Elite Eight."
On getting ready for the next round…
"I told the players, afterward, to enjoy this. It was a fantastic effort. We got a really good goal by Ally Watt with the run-over by Emily Bates. Dani (Rice), the backline, the midfield, everybody from front to back did a good job of winning balls and making North Carolina fight for everything. I don't know what else to say but 'We're smiling inside.' No matter who we play on Sunday, we know we have a tough task, so we'll enjoy this tonight and then tomorrow it's time to get our mind in the right place for the next match."
Freshman forward Ally Watt
On advancing to the next round…
"It's great to advance to next round, especially beating a team like North Carolina. They're legendary. We came in with the mentality that we can beat them and we did."
On her goal…
"Stephanie (Malherbe) served a ball over the top. The defender got it, but I just fought to get it from her. I tried to cross the ball in, but it found the side netting with that dummy from Emily Bates, distracting the keeper. A goal's a goal and it was great to be on top. Then we just had to fight them off the rest of the game. They were pretty relentless, but I'm pretty proud of the way Dani (Rice) and the backline played. They were huge."
Team Stats
TAMU
NC
Goals
1
0
Shots
7
14
Shots on Goal
4
3
Saves
3
3
Corners
0
5
Fouls
10
13
Scoring Plays
Watt, Ally (7)
Shot diagonal from outside the left corn
27:06
Game Leaders
Players
Shots
3
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
M/F
/ Soccer
M
/ Soccer
D/M
/ Soccer
M
/ Soccer
M/F
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
GK
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
D
/ SoccerThe Aggie Soccer Hour (Extra)
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The Aggie Soccer Hour (Ep 3)
Wednesday, September 10
Weekly Press Conference: G Guerrieri
Monday, September 08
Highlights: Texas A&M 1, TCU 2
Sunday, September 07
