FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FLORIDA STATE SOCCER

DATE: Sunday, October 30, 2011

CONTACT: Jason Leturmy (850) 228-7568 or jleturmy@fsu.edu

 

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (seminoles.com) – A golden goal by Jessica Price in double overtime gave No. 12 Florida State (13-6-0) a 1-0 victory over No. 8 North Carolina (11-5-1) in the ACC Tournament Quarterfinals at Fetzer Field Sunday afternoon. 

 

The Seminoles dominated the Tar Heels in extra time and were rewarded for their efforts in the 105th minute as Price found the back of the net putting away a loose ball in the box following a Florida State corner. The game-winner was Price’s second of the season and 11th of her career, while it marked her second career golden goal.

 

The play was set up when Tiffany McCarty won the corner kick.  Tiana Brockway took the corner and sent the ball to the far post where Ella Stephan put a header on goal.  UNC keeper Anna Sieloff was there for the initial save as she tipped the ball off the crossbar, but Price made a great read and one-timed the rebound over the goal line for the game-winner. 

 

“This was a big win for our program,” said head coach Mark Krikorian.  “Everyone knows that success in women’s soccer goes through UNC, so to come in here, be on the road and to win in overtime is a credit to our players’ hard work and resilient behavior.

 

“Ella got up and won it and the goalie tipped it,” said Price on the goal sequence.  “The ball went off the post and I poked it in.  It was kind of a big scrum (in the box), but it went in the goal and that is all that matters.  We will certainly take it.”

 

“We were able to earn a corner,” added Stephan.  “Tiana crossed the ball in and I went up for the header.  I don’t know exactly what happened after that; all I know is that Jess worked really hard to get in the box and tap it in.  We were able to put that ball away and come out with the victory.”

 

The win advanced the sixth-seeded Seminoles into the semifinals of the ACC Tournament where they will square-off against second-seeded Virginia. 

 

“It was a hard fought game, a hard fought win and we are thrilled to beat Carolina and to move on in the ACC Tournament,” added Krikorian.

 

With the win, Florida State also created a bit of history on Sunday handing the Tar Heels their first ever loss in the ACC Tournament.  UNC was 58-0-4 entering the quarterfinal match on Sunday.  It also marked the first time the Tar Heels have lost three straight games in their 33-year history. The win was the first for the Seminoles in Chapel Hill (1-7-2), while it marked the first win over UNC in 11 tries in the ACC Tournament.

 

“It feels really good, even after the game we played in the regular season (2-0 loss to UNC), we had that on our minds coming into this game today,” said Price.  “We wanted to come in and send a message.”

 

“Always exciting (to be moving on in the ACC Tournament,” added Stephan.  “This is my senior year; the senior last go around, so go big or go home.”

 

Despite being outshot 18-14 by UNC on Sunday, the Seminole backline of Toni Pressley, Kassey Kallman, Ines Jaurena and Brockway did their part limiting the Tar Heels to just three shots on goal with two of those coming in the final two minutes of regulation. 

 

The shutout was FSU’s ninth of the season and third in the last four games.  FSU keeper Kelsey Wys played the entire contest and made two saves to record her fifth shutout of the season.

 

“Before the game, we talked about how the team can’t win if they can’t score goals,” said Brockway.  “That was one of our main focuses today.”

 

Dagny Brynjarsdottir, Tori Huster and McCarty led the Seminoles with three shots each, while Janice Cayman recorded two.  Crystal Dunn paced the Tar Heels with five shots on the afternoon. 

 

UNC’s Alyssa Rich had the game’s first scoring chance as she one-time a shot just wide of the right post on a feed from Dunn in the sixth minute of play.  Dunn got behind a Seminole defender and dribbled into the 18-yard box before slipping a pass to a wide open Rich, who missed wide. 

 

Brockway came through with a huge save on the post following the second Tar Heel corner of the game in the 13th minute.  Dunn collected the loose ball at the top of the 18-yard box after the Seminoles tried to clear the ball out of the zone on a few headers.  Dunn dribbled to the top of the box before drilling a shot on goal, but Brockway was there on the left post to boot the ball out of the box and keep the game tied at zero.

 

McCarty registered FSU’s first shot of the game in the 15th minute firing from about 18 yards out but UNC keeper Adelaide Gay was there for the save.

 

A great passing combination in the 20th minute led to FSU’s first scoring threat of the game. Cayman sent a ball from the left side of the pitch into the box where McCarty headed the ball forward to Brynjarsdottir, who one-timed a header on goal but Gay was there for the save. 

 

Kallman fired a header wide of the right post in the 28th minute on a long pass from Pressley off a free kick from about midfield.  Forty-seven seconds later the Seminoles were back at it as Brynjarsdottir got in behind the Tar Heel defense and past Gay on a pass from Cayman.  The native from Iceland collected the ball and sent a shot on goal from the left side of the pitch that was saved by a Tar Heel defender. 

 

The Tar Heels went into the locker room with a 7-4 advantage in shots, while both teams attempted two corners.

 

McCarty looked to break the scoreless tie in the 52nd minute when the redshirt junior made a run down the middle of the field on a long pass from Brockway.  McCarty went weaving in and out of the UNC backline before freeing up enough space to put a shot on goal.  Tar Heel keeper Anna Sieloff got just enough of her hand on the ball to redirect the shot wide of the right post. 

 

Following a Tar Heel foul deep in the Seminoles offensive third, Brockway attempted a quick restart but Dunn was all over it as she blocked the kick and made a long run down a wide open field.  Dunn and Emmalie Pfankuch ran side by side with the Seminoles trying to gain ground.  Wys faked like she was coming out to get the ball and then settled back before sliding in to break up Dunn’s run.  Instead of putting a shot on goal, Dunn decided to pass it out to her right to Pfankuch but the touch was too hard and went out of bounds passed the end line. 

 

The Seminoles had a great look on goal in the 82nd minute as Huster fired a shot from about 16 yards that was tipped over the crossbar by Sieloff. 

 

UNC put a barrage of shots on goal in the final three minutes of regulation as Wys came through with two huge saves, while Stephan registered a block on a Dunn shot. 

 

With less than a minute remaining, the Tar Heels were called for a foul in the Seminoles’ offensive third.  Brockway took the free kick and sent the ball into the box.  Cayman found the loose ball and registered a shot on goal but the shot was saved by a Tar Heel defender to force overtime.

 

Florida State will return to North Carolina where they will face Virginia in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament in Cary, N.C. on Friday, November 4.  Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. and will be seen on ESPN3.com.

 

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