Russell Sends #7 Orange Past #2 UNC in OT

Saturday, September 1

J.S. Coyne Stadium

1 p.m.

Syracuse University

(2-1)

North Carolina

(3-0)

OT 2

North Carolina

Syracuse

9/1/2012 5:36:00 PM | Field Hockey

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Freshman Emma Russell scored off a penalty corner with 9:03 left in overtime to give No. 7 Syracuse field hockey (3-0) a monumental 1-0 victory against No. 2 North Carolina (2-1) on Saturday afternoon at J.S. Coyne Stadium, running the Orange's home winning streak to 30 games.

With the win, the Orange defeated its highest-ranked opponent since a 2-1 victory at No. 1 Maryland on Sept. 13, 2008.

"It was such a monumental moment for our program," head coach Ange Bradley said. "This group of seniors has been working so hard throughout their careers and this is the first time they have gotten a win like this. It was an honor to have a program with the tradition of North Carolina at Coyne, and to get the result we wanted is just awesome."

It is the first time the Tar Heels have been shut out since 2009, 1-0 vs. Maryland in the ACC Tournament.

Russell took a pass from Leonie Geyer in the right side of the circle off a penalty corner during the 7-on-7 overtime period and drove shot inside the right post for the winning goal, the second of tally of her career.

After the teams played scoreless through 70 minutes of regulation and the Orange fought off a Tar Heels penalty corner 3:30 into the overtime period, Russell won Syracuse a corner of its own just over five minutes in, setting up her own winning goal.

Senior goalkeeper Leann Stiver made six saves for her 14^th career shutout. UNC's Sassi Ammer made four stops.

For the game, North Carolina held a slight edge in shots, 16-14, and in penalty corners, 7-4.

Syracuse withstood three UNC penalty corners between the 20:00 and 8:30 marks of the second half after Ammer made a stop on a Russell scoring opportunity off the rebound of a Kelsey Millman shot at the 22-minute mark, keeping the game scoreless.

The teams were evenly matched throughout the first half, battling to a 0-0 draw after 35 minutes of play. Shots were tied as, 7-7, while UNC held a 3-2 advantage in first-half penalty corners.

The Orange's 30-game winning streak at Coyne Stadium dates back to a Sept. 6, 2009 loss to No. 7 Princeton, 3-2 in overtime.

Syracuse heads to New England for a pair of games next weekend, at New Hampshire on Friday (7 p.m.) and against Boston University at Harvard's Jordan Field on Sunday (11 a.m.).