DURHAM, N.C. – Junior Margaret Power tallied her first goal of the season Sunday afternoon as the No. 18 Arkansas women’s soccer team fell to 14th-ranked North Carolina at the Duke Nike Classic at Koskinen Stadium.
The Razorbacks dropped a pair of contests on the weekend against Top 20 teams and fell to 3-2-1 on the season. The Tar Heels are now 3-2-1 on the season as well. On Friday night, Arkansas fell to No. 19 Duke 3-0.
UNC finished with a 22-4 edge in shots and a 7-3 advantage in corner kicks against Arkansas, while the Razorbacks won the saves battle 5-1.
The Tar Heels took the lead on Summer Green's first goal of the season at the 16:20 mark of the match. Midfielder Brooke Elby slipped the ball to Green, who bent a shot over goalkeeper Cameron Carter from just outside the 18-yard box in the 17th minute.
The Razorbacks quickly answered with a goal by junior Margaret Power, her first of the season, assisted by sophomore Claire Kelly and junior Ashleigh Ellenwood. Power finished the scoring chance with a volley to the left corner of the net from 12 yards out in the 19th minute of play.
At the 38:30 mark, UNC freshman Annie Kingman notched the game-winning tally, gathering in a cross from the right side and burying it in the left corner past Carter.
After 45 minutes of play, the Tar Heels held an 11-2 advantage in shots and a 4-1 lead in corners.
Carolina continued to attack aggressively in the second half and were able to limit the Razorbacks to a pair of shots in the second half, en route to picking up the 2-1 victory.
Carter went the full 90 minutes in goal for Arkansas, tallying five saves. Bryane Heaberlin recorded one save in 90 minutes between the pipes for the Tar Heels.
The Razorbacks will return to Fayetteville for a three-match homestand. Arkansas will battle Rice on Friday, Sept. 12 at 7:05 p.m., before welcoming Missouri State (Sept. 14) and SEC foe Kentucky (Sept. 19) to Razorback Field. All three matches will be broadcast live on SEC Network +.
Postgame Notes
- Arkansas is 27-20-3 overall and 4-3-1 as a ranked team in the Hale era.
- The Razorbacks are 3-7-0 vs. Top 25 teams under head coach Colby Hale
- Arkansas’ last victory over a ranked team came on Sept. 27, 2013 with a 3-0 win over No. 14 Kentucky in Lexington, Ky.
- Arkansas played its sixth match this season as a ranked team, which is the most consecutive games played as a ranked team in program history.
- Arkansas is 3-3-1 in neutral site matchups in three years under Hale.
- Arkansas’ last victory over a ranked team came on Sept. 27, 2013 with a 3-0 win over No. 14 Kentucky in Lexington, Ky.
- Sunday’s match against No. 12/14 North Carolina marked the first time since Sept. 27 & 29, 2012 that Arkansas has played back-to-back ranked opponents.
Emily Hurd, Penn State
Frannie Crouse, Penn State
Toni Payne, Duke
Kaylyn Cooper, Arkansas
Salina Williford, Penn State
Satara Murray, North Carolina
Christina Gibbons, Duke
Erika Miller, Arkansas
Jessie Scarpa, North Carolina
Summer Green, North Carolina
Offensive MVP – Kelly Cobb, Duke
Defensive MVP - Brooke Elby, North Carolina
Coach Hale Postgame Sound
“Obviously you’re never satisfied with losses, but for the long-term growth for our program there are a lot of positives to take away from this weekend. In the second half we caused them some problems, but we weren’t good enough on our defending in the box. Overall we will take a lot away from this weekend.”
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