It seemed like Boston College field hockey was just about going to end its six-game losing streak in what would have been the upset of the season—and even maybe of the last few years.
That was fleeting, though, as the Eagles (3–6, 0–3 Atlantic Coast) fell to the No. 2 Tar Heels (9–1, 3–1) 2–1 on Sunday afternoon in front of a packed Newton Campus crowd. Even Charley Kramer’s nine saves did not cut it for the Eagles.
“We are one of the best teams in the country when we move the ball,” BC head coach Kelly Doton said. “A team that can run like that will make you pay, and that’s what happened.”
And when asked what needs to click for her team, Doton’s response was clear.
“We got to score more goals,” Doton said. “We aren’t scoring enough.”
Just one goal would not suffice for BC, as UNC notched two goals in the final 10 minutes of play.
“We are in every single game, but the records surely don’t show it,” Doton said.
The first half was anyone’s game, as neither squad was able to inch past the other successfully. Everything changed for BC when Melea Weber deflected the ball into the back of UNC’s net.
It seemed, for a moment, like BC was going to do it. That is, until the Eagles’ missteps and late-game fatigue caught up to them. And before they knew it, UNC had knotted up the game.
Off a Dani Mendez give-and-go, Isabel Boere showed a glimpse of why UNC won the 2023 National Championship during head coach Erin Matson’s first year at the helm.
Shifting the game in their favor, the Tar Heels did not back down. In fact, they were only just heating up. After a foul on the Eagles, UNC had the prime opportunity to take the lead with a penalty stroke.
Standing on the line, Sanne Hak fired a rocket past the reach of Kramer, who dove to try and stop the ball. With a little over three minutes left in the matchup, BC saw its lead vanish right before its eyes.
Just like that, the Eagles tacked on another loss to their now six-game streak.
“We can do two things—we can give up and go home and not play these games, or we can figure out some way to represent the jersey like I know we can,” Doton said. “We just have to keep fighting.”
