Olivia Pappalardo and teammates celebrate a goal that led to the Buff’s 2-0 victory over BYU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 15, 2014, at Prentup Field. (Gray Bender/CU Independent)
No member of the University of Colorado women’s soccer team has ever shied away from a challenging game. After all, it’s what comes with playing in the Pac-12. Five teams from the conference are ranked in the Top 25, and seven (including Colorado) made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Buffaloes played the other six during the regular season.
The parity that exists in Pac-12 women’s soccer is invaluable to teams who make it this far into the season, as the quality of opponent simply keeps getting better. But it doesn’t faze the CU seniors, who have time and time again embraced the challenge, and who will face a stiff test this Friday at 7 p.m. against the University of North Carolina Tar Heels.
“I definitely feel like being in the Pac-12 and playing against UCLA, and Stanford, and Cal and all the top teams definitely prepares you really well for playing against UNC,” said senior defender Tori Cooper. “We’ve seen the best and it’s just going to be another one of the best and we can definitely match them.”
No one on the team would argue with Coopers’ assessment. The Buffaloes are currently playing the best soccer they’ve played all year, only allowing one goal in four games while scoring a total of nine. Their attacks have been sharp, led by sophomore forward Brie Hooks, and their control of their own half has been dominant. Senior midfielder Darcy Jerman and Tori Cooper have seen to that, but they will face arguably their toughest test this season. The No. 6 Tar Heels, in the second round of the NCAA tournament, in North Carolina.
UNC women’s soccer can most readily be described as a powerhouse, having won 21 NCAA national championships under head coach Anson Dorrance. Since the inception of the NCAA women’s soccer tournament in 1982, the Tar Heels have never not been eliminated before the third round. This year, they will look to replicate the form that won them the 2012 national championship, and the road starts with an in-form Colorado team.
UNC excels in their distribution of the ball: the team has nine players who are having multi-goal seasons. In the gritty Atlantic Coast Conference, they have been battle tested, playing against 10 ranked opponents this year. But that doesn’t spell doom for the Buffaloes who have been playing elite teams in their own rite. The Tar Heels tied No. 1 UCLA 0-0, while Colorado only lost to the top-ranked Bruins by one goal. CU also stepped on the field with Stanford University, who defeated UNC in overtime, and against teams such as California and Washington, who are about on par with Pepperdine University and Arkansas (two of UNC’s regular season opponents.)
Colorado head coach Danny Sanchez recognizes how good the Tar Heels can be, but isn’t planning on changing his game plan one bit. While it will take a lot to beat UNC, he is confident his team can rise to the challenge.
“I don’t think we’re going to have to change a lot, we’re just going to have to do it better and faster,” said Sanchez. “It’s going to be a huge atmosphere but that’s why we came to Colorado as coaching staff and players. We came to play in these types of environments and these types of games.”
As for his seniors, Jerman and Cooper are almost finished wearing black and gold on Prentup Field, but aren’t quite ready for the ride to end yet. When asked if they wanted to prolong their careers in Boulder by beating North Carolina, both girls responded with the same word: “definitely.”
Contact CU Independent Sports Editor Andrew Haubner at andrew.haubner@colorado.edu.
