No. 2 North Carolina shuts down field hockey

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – It took more than 70 minutes for the Terrapins field hockey team to score Saturday, and by the time midfielder Jemma Buckley's ball finally trickled across the goal line, it hardly mattered.

The No. 3 Terps had narrowly avoided the shutout, but they couldn't avoid falling, 2-1, to No. 2 North Carolina. With the win, the Tar Heels clinched the top seed in November's ACC Tournament.

The final score at Henry Stadium showed just a one-goal margin of victory for North Carolina, but the play on the field indicated a wider gap between the two league rivals. The Tar Heels (16-1, 5-0 ACC) held a shutout throughout regulation, not allowing the Terps (13-3, 4-1) to score until an untimed penalty corner after time expired.

"Carolina is a strong team, and they played a championship-level start," coach Missy Meharg said. "Maryland seemed to be a little bit under their intensity level at the beginning, which took us a little while to get into tempo."

A slow start for the Terps marked the origins of their eventual downfall. After a penalty-corner goal gave North Carolina the lead less than eight minutes into the game, the Tar Heels' defense completely neutralized their guests' attack for the remainder of the first half.

The Terps could do little against North Carolina's top-ranked defense before halftime, and the Tar Heels kept them completely off the stat sheet. The Terps weren't granted any penalty-corner chances and didn't record a shot before the break, the first time this season in which the team was held without a shot on goal in a half.

"We didn't get the results we wanted," midfielder Megan Frazer said. "I think a lot of it wasn't what they did to us, it's what we did to ourselves. We didn't shove for the ball, we didn't pass; it was really on us."

Halftime adjustments triggered a stronger offensive effort in the second half, but it wasn't enough to break through a suffocating North Carolina defense.

While the Terps managed to get six penalty-corner opportunities and take eight shots after halftime, they weren't able to convert any until it was too late. A goal by midfielder Kelsey Kolojejchick — her first-ever tally against the Terps in six career meetings — with just more than 20 minutes remaining proved the game winner.

"I think we just played more like the game we wanted to play originally," Buckley said. "We stuck to the game plan a bit better; everyone was a bit more intense and actually wanted to play. … Second half, we were a different team."

Inconsistencies in the team's play have plagued the Terps throughout the season, and Saturday was no different. The Terps' performance in the second half was good enough to put them in a position to win a fourth straight match against the Tar Heels, but a sluggish start put them in a hole too deep to dig out of.

The team has two more regular-season contests on the schedule before the conference tournament, beginning with a Wednesday-night home matchup with Drexel. Putting together two halves of consistent play in those matchups will be crucial, as there's likely a chance the Terps will see the Tar Heels again in November.

"The outcome is not something we're used to against any team," Meharg said. "This is a very good Carolina team, and we would love to be in a position to play them for the ACC Championship."

"I guess next time we have to come out a bit harder and play our game," Buckley said, "instead of getting caught in theirs."

vitale@umdbk.com