Coming off its fourth consecutive shutout, the University of North Carolina Wilmington women’s soccer team heads into the Colonial Athletic Association tournament semifinals this weekend on a record-setting pace as it eyes its first conference title since 2009.
With a dominating 4-0 win over Delaware in the conference quarterfinals on Sunday, Nov. 1, the Seahawks improved their record to 14-5-1 and finished the season undefeated at UNCW Soccer Stadium.
The 14 wins are the most in school history, eclipsing the 13 games won by UNCW women’s soccer teams in 2006 and 2009. The 2009 squad went on to win the school’s only CAA championship, a goal within reach this year when the team travels to Hempstead, New York, to face William & Mary in the tournament semifinals Friday, Nov. 6.
After a slow start to the season, the Seahawks are picking up momentum when they most need it. UNCW started the season with a 1-3 record, but have since won 13 of their last 16 games, posting shutouts in nine of those wins.
“The team is playing the best it has all season,” said senior forward Maddie McCormick, who posted a brace by scoring two goals against Delaware. “We’re clicking, everyone’s doing the right thing and everyone knows what each other is going to do.”
With her effort on Sunday, McCormick scored 14 goals in a season, tying for second in school history, and became the fourth player in UNCW history to score 30 or more goals in a career, with a career record of 31 so far.
One of the Seahawk losses was at the hands of their next opponent, William & Mary, which defeated UNCW 1-0 in Williamsburg, Virginia on Oct. 11. It was the last time the Seahawks lost.
Since then, UNCW has been shutting down its opponents’ offense. The win over the Delaware marked the team’s fourth-consecutive shutout, with the team posting a combined score of 19-0 in those wins.
The strong defensive performance is the result of the team’s defensive back four and goalkeeper coming together and “figuring it out,” said head coach Paul Cairney.
“I wish it was something I could say we we’re doing in training, but I’m just leaving them alone,” Cairney said. “They just keep adding on to each other and helping each other. It’s really good to see a back four playing in sync.”
UNCW goalkeeper Carolyn Huddy said defense would be a key in the Seahawks’ game plan against the William & Mary Tribe.
“If we don’t let them have chances and they can’t score, they can’t win,” she said.
William & Mary has been a perennial power in the CAA, having made 24 appearances in the NCAA tournament and posting winning seasons for 34 consecutive years.
“William & Mary is a really good team. What they have is the experience of winning championship, the experience of being the top 25,” Cairney said. “Our team needs to be less intimidated by them. I think our kids will remember the game the last time.”
McCormick said the narrow loss to the Tribe earlier this season will serve as motivation as they prepare for this Friday’s rematch.
“We have kind of a chip on our shoulder from losing to them last time,” she said. “We walked off the field knowing we left goals that we could have scored and that we didn’t play our best game.”
email [email protected]
