October 5, 2003 - Chapel Hill, North Carolina

 

A veteran Maryland Terrapin squad came to Chapel Hill Sunday with a perfect 9-0-0 record and a defense that had just allowed two goals so far this year.  A very young North Carolina team that has greatly exceeded expectations so far this year came into the contest with a 7-1-2 record and a defense that had just allowed six goals so far this year. 

 

When it was all said and done youth prevailed as Tar Heel freshman Corey Ashe scored the game-winner in the 68th minute of play before a Fetzer Field crowd of over 3,000.  The 1-0 North Carolina win improved the Tar Heels to 8-1-2 and 2-1-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play and dropped Maryland to 9-1-0 and 3-1-0 in conference action. 

 

 

Ashe tallied the game-winner off a double assist from junior forward Marcus Storey and freshman forward Jamie Watson.  The goal was the result of a nice combination of passes that created space for Ashe and resulted in a shot from ten yards out that found its way into the upper left corner of the goal.  The goal was Ashe’s second of the season and his first game-winner as a Tar Heel.   One of several very talented Tar Heel freshmen, Ashe is a member of the U.S. U-17 National Team and is considered one of the premier young forwards in the country.   Watson from Coppell, Texas,  who is also considered one of the top young players in the country,  is also a member of the U.S. U-17 National Team.  

 

Credit the North Carolina defense lead by senior co-captains Sean McGinty and Grant Porter and junior Tim Merritt with an outstanding evening of soccer.  Freshman Justin Hughes, who was making just his fourth start of the year, tallied two saves in route to the shutout.  Hughes is an NSCAA All-America selection out of Wakefield High School in North Carolina.  

 

 

The match was Maryland’s third road trip of the year.  They previously had faced Furman and Butler in Omaha, Nebraska and Duke in Durham.  The win was North Carolina’s fifth at Fetzer Field this year without a loss. 

 

North Carolina returns to action next weekend at the UNC-Greensboro Adidas Classic where they will face Mercer on Friday and Kentucky on Sunday.  Maryland returns to action when they host Big East Conference member Georgetown next Wednesday.