The Eagles ended their season with a bang, tying No. 3 UNC 1-1 at home on Thursday night. The draw is the fourth 1-1 draw in a row, with the Eagles ending their season undefeated in their last four games. Aislin Streicek scored for BC with Ally Sentnor answering for UNC.
Streicek would be the hero for the Eagles in the 32nd minute, cleaning up a set piece. Whipping in the corner, Streicek’s ball curled towards the net. UNC keeper Emmie Allen came out to punch the ball away, but couldn’t get enough on it through traffic. The ball went through her hands and trickled into the back of the net as the Tar Heels frantically tried to clear it. The goal gave the Eagles the 1-0 lead on the No. 3 team in the country and marked the third game in a row where BC would score first.
UNC would tie the game in the 62nd minute, having turned up the pressure in the second half. Starting on the Eagles’ left side, Sentnor drove across the top of the 18-yard-box, creating plenty of space for herself having cut past her first defender. As two Eagles closed down on her, Sentnor fired the ball back across her body, sending it into the far post side netting, past Wiebke Willebrandt. It was Sentnor’s seventh goal of the season and tied the game 1-1.
The UNC goal rejuvenated a Tar Heels side that seemed content for most of the first half to let the Eagles dictate play in the midfield. While the Eagles built up through the midfield, the Tar Heels preferred long balls over the top to spring their speedy wingers. The Eagles adjusted for that, catching UNC offsides four times in the first half, frustrating the Tar Heels.
Where the offsides trap failed, Willebrandt stepped in, making 11 saves on UNC’s 12 shots. The keeper, as she has all season, stepped up big time ensuring that her box was organized and that she was in the right position to make a difficult save look easy. Perhaps her best save came in the 68th minute. Savy King, realizing she had space on the left side, fired off a shot that looked certain to land in the far-post netting. Willebrandt timed her dive perfectly, punching the ball away and out to keep the score 1-1.
Having built chemistry with the backline all season, in the moments where Willebrandt made the initial save but let a rebound go, her defense had her back. With 11 minutes left in the first, Kenna Thomas cleared the ball away from the goal line, preserving the 1-0 lead. In the second half, as UNC turned on the pressure, Sydney Segalla and Claire Mensi worked together with Willebrandt to keep the tie. Willebrandt made the initial save, Segalla blocked the second shot, and Mensi cleared the third chance off the goal line, keeping the score 1-1.
The all-in defensive effort provided stability as the offense struggled to create chances. The Eagles had two shots on net compared to the Tar Heels’ twelve shots and only three shots total compared to UNC’s twenty-one shots. The lopsided offense has been a storyline all season, with Richards and Streicek providing the bulk of the scoring. The wingers, outside of Streicek, provided link up play but weren’t able to find the back of the net, placing the scoring burden on the shoulders of a few players.
With crisp passes and a willingness to concede space on the wings in exchange for protecting the middle of the field, the Eagles fought speed with the speed of Segalla and the return of Andi Barth. Looking to score on the counter, the ability of the wingers to stretch the field proved instrumental in slowing down the UNC offense and allowing the Eagles to retain possession, especially in their own half. Laura Gouvin served as the fulcrum, passing between the defense and offense, cleaning up any short passes that UNC tried to sneak through.
The last twenty minutes were a defensive battle that showcased the Eagles strengths as BC kept UNC off the board despite the Tar Heels committing to a full-throated attack. Despite the pressure, the Eagles maintained their style of play, preferring short passes down the wing to escape the UNC press. Although spending most of the last ten minutes in their own half, the Eagles pushed forward at every opportunity, forcing UNC to fight for every inch of space in the final third.
The Eagles end their season 3-9-6 going 0-6-4 in the ACC.
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