North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer explained

North Carolina Tar Heels
women's soccer
Current:2024 North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team
University:University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Conference:Atlantic Coast Conference
Conference Short:ACC
City:Chapel Hill
Stateabb:NC
State:North Carolina
Coach:Damon Nahas (Iterim)
Tenure:1st
Stadium:Dorrance Field
Capacity:4,200
Pattern B1:_northcarolina soccer 23h
Leftarm1:7BAFD4
Body1:7BAFD4
Rightarm1:7BAFD4
Shorts1:7BAFD4
Socks1:7BAFD4
Pattern B2:_northcarolina soccer 23a
Leftarm2:ffffff
Body2:ffffff
Rightarm2:ffffff
Shorts2:ffffff
Socks2:ffffff
Ncaachampion:1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2012
Ncaarunnerup:1985, 1998, 2001, 2018, 2019, 2022
Ncaafinalfour:1995, 2002, 2016, 2020
Ncaatourneys:1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 [1]
Conference Tournament:1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2017, 2019
Conference Season:1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022

The North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the Atlantic Coast Conference of NCAA Division I soccer.[2] The team has won 22 of the 35 Atlantic Coast Conference championships, and 21 of the 41 NCAA national championships. The team has participated in every NCAA tournament.

History

The UNC women's soccer team began as a club team established by students looking for high level competition. In 1979, they petitioned the UNC Athletic Director, Bill Cobey, to take the club to the varsity level. Cobey asked Anson Dorrance, then the UNC men's soccer coach to assess the club's ability to transition to varsity status. Dorrance was impressed enough by the club, then coached by Mike Byers, to recommend that the school form a women's soccer team. Cobey agreed and hired Dorrance as head coach, with Byers as an assistant, for the 1978 season. That year, the Tar Heels played an essentially club schedule, including games against high school teams. However, in 1979, the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women, at the prompting of Dorrance and University of Colorado coach, Chris Lidstone, established a national women's soccer program.[3]

At the time, UNC had the only varsity women's soccer team in the Southeast and this allowed Dorrance to recruit the top talent in the region. In 1981, he recruited one of the most talented freshman squads in the history of women's soccer. Eight of those recruits won starting positions and took the team to the first, and only, AIAW national championship. This group would set the tone for Tar Heels soccer for down through its history. As Dorrance recalls it, "These were the true pioneers. They were given nothing. They were accustomed to taking things and so they weren't as genteel as the sort of young ladies we can recruit now. . . They were the sort of girls who would go downtown, burn it to the ground, . . . But then, they were on time for every single practice and in practice they worked themselves until they were bleeding and throwing up. They had a tremendous commitment to victory and to personal athletic excellence. And for that I admired them because they were a tremendous group. And even though, off the field, I think they all hated each other. But once the game began, there was a collective fury that just intimidated everyone they played against."[4] Building on that competitive drive, the Tar Heels went on to win the first three NCAA championships, and dominate the sport for years to come.

All-time record

  Year  Head Coach  Overall  ACC  ACC Tournament    NCAA Tournament  
1979  Anson Dorrance  10–2–0
198021–5–0AIAW Semifinals
198123–0–0AIAW Champions
198219–2–0Champions
198319–1–0Champions
198424–0–1Champions
198518–2–1Runner up
198624–0–1Champions
198723–0–13–0–0Champions
198818–0–31–0–1Runner upChampions
198924–0–14–0–0ChampionsChampions
199020–1–14–0–0ChampionsChampions
199124–0–04–0–0ChampionsChampions
199225–0–04–0–0ChampionsChampions
199323–0–04–0–0ChampionsChampions
199425–1–15–1–0ChampionsChampions
199525–1–07–0–0ChampionsSemifinals
199625–1–07–0–0ChampionsChampions
199727–0–17–0–0ChampionsChampions
199825–1–07–0–0ChampionsRunner up
199924–2–07–0–0ChampionsChampions
200021–3–04–3–0ChampionsChampions
200124–1–07–0–0ChampionsRunner up
200221–2–44–1–2ChampionsSemifinals
200327–0–07–0–0ChampionsChampions
200420–1–29–0–0Runner upThird round
200523–1–19–1–0ChampionsQuarterfinals
200627–1–010–0–0ChampionsChampions
200719–4–19–1–0ChampionsThird round
200825–1–29–0–1ChampionsChampions
200923–3–19–3–0ChampionsChampions
201019–3–29–3–0SemifinalsThird round
201113–5–26–3–1QuarterfinalsThird round
201215–5–36–3–1QuarterfinalsChampions
201320–5–010–3–0SemifinalsQuarterfinals
201414–4–29–0–1SemifinalsThird round
201515–5–17–3–0SemifinalsSecond round
201617–4–46–2–2Runner upSemifinals
201717–3–28–0–2ChampionsThird round
201821–4–210–0–0Runner upRunner up
201924–1–29–0–1ChampionsRunner up
202018–2–08–0–0Runner upSemifinals
202112–3–35–2–3First round
202220–5–18–2–0Runner upRunner up
202313–2–85–0–5QuarterfinalsQuarterfinals

Current roster

[5]

Individual honors

National Coach of the Year:

ACC Coach of the Year:

Hermann Trophy

ACC Player of the Year:

ACC Defensive Player of the Year:

ACC Offensive Player of the Year:

ACC Rookie of the Year:

NCAA Tournament MVP:

Offensive Player of the NCAA Tournament:

Defensive Player of the Tournament:

First Team All-America Selection: As of 2011, North Carolina had 70 players gain first-team All-American recognition. The next two schools with the greatest number of All-Americans were tied with twenty-two each.[6]

Notable alumnae

Notes and References

  1. http://tarheelblue.cstv.com/auto_pdf/p_hotos/s_chools/unc/sports/w-soccer/auto_pdf/w-soccer-guide-09 "2009 North Carolina Women's Soccer Media Guide."
  2. http://tarheelblue.cstv.com/sports/w-soccer/spec-rel/2007-081506aac.html "2007 North Carolina Women's Soccer Media Guide."
  3. http://research.wsulibs.wsu.edu:8080/dspace/bitstream/2376/559/1/M_Robertson_072706.pdf EXPLAINING VARIATION IN THE SEX COMPOSITION OF COACHES FOR WOMEN’S INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC TEAMS
  4. http://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/html_use/L-0054.html Interview with Anson Dorrance, June 11, 1991
  5. Web site: 2024 Women's Soccer Roster . University of North Carolina Athletics. August 15, 2024.
  6. http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_soccer_RB/2012/D1.pdf "Official 2012 NCAA Men's and Women's Soccer Records Book."