CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – A fourth-quarter goal on a penalty corner made the difference as the Saint Joseph's field hockey team fell to top-ranked and number one overall seed North Carolina, 2-1, at Karen Shelton Stadium on Friday afternoon.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
• North Carolina (20-1) had the bulk of possession early, but the Hawks held the Tar Heels to just two shots in the opening quarter, neither of them on frame.
 
• UNC forced Hawk goalkeeper Paige Kieft into an early save in the second before Ava Smith asked a similar question of UNC's Katie Wimmer.
 
• Ryleigh Heck got the Tar Heels on the board with 4:17 to go in the frame to give the hosts a 1-0 lead at halftime.
 
• Saint Joseph's (12-10) found its equalizer midway through the third.  Brooke James tested Carolina's Merritt Skubisz with a shot that Skubisz turned away; Laine Delmotte picked up the rebound and fired past Skubisz to draw the Hawks level.
 
• Both teams probed for the go-ahead tally late in the third and into the fourth, and it would be the Tar Heels that found it through Charly Bruder on a corner with 12:39 to play.
 
• The Hawks would earn a pair of corners midway through the quarter, and Milou Kluyt put an effort on goal that forced a defensive save from Isabel Boere to keep UNC in front.  Saint Joseph's possessed the ball late in the Carolina end of the field, but could not come up with an equalizer before time expired.
 
BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• Kieft made four saves for the Hawks while Wimmer made one in the first half for UNC and Skubisz added two in the second.
 
• The hosts enjoyed a 14-7 shot advantage, but only a 6-5 edge in shots on target.  The Tar Heels were awarded six penalty corners, while the Hawks earned two.
 
• Delmotte's goal was the first of her collegiate career, spanning across four years at Lafayette and one at Saint Joseph's.
 
• Friday's game was the fourth between Saint Joseph's and North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament; the Tar Heels are the only opponent that the Hawks have faced multiple times in NCAA Tournament play.
 
HAWK TALK
 
Watch head coach Hannah Prince's postgame press conference