North Carolina vs. Indiana Men's Soccer Quarterfinal Breakdown
#16 Indiana vs. #9 North Carolina
The Indiana defense was able to hold Ryan Finley and the Fighting Irish offense to just one goal but it was the Hoosier offense that was the highlight of the third round match. Indiana controlled the ball and took ten shots on goal, netting the ball twice. Nikita Kotlov found the net for the tying goal one minute after Notre Dame’s Kyle Richard made a goal early in the second. Eriq Zavaleta sealed the game with the winning net in the 101st minute in the second overtime. Indiana will meet North Carolina in the quarter finals hoping to move on to the semis, but North Carolina wont let it come easy as the defending champs try for a repeat. The Tar Heels stopped Fairleigh Dickinson’s run at the Cup in a 1-0 victory in the third round. The only goal of the match came after the start of the first overtime by Tar Heel Cameron Brown. It was a midfield match with both teams taking less than five shots on goal. Both defenses truly performed to their top abilities, but North Carolina was able to take home the win. Zavaleta, who has tallied 17 goals this season, and the Hoosier offense has shown that they are the more aggressive offense. However, the NC defense has proven their worth this season as well. If the Hoosiers somehow sneak the ball past the wall of defenders who have held their opponents to just 52 shots on goal, then they need to face the next challenge of getting it in the net past NC keeper Scott Goodwin who has let just six slip by. This will be another true offense versus defense game pitting two of the top teams in the league.
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