BYU Women’s Soccer Defeats UNC In Miracle Comeback, Advances To College Cup
Nov 24, 2023, 8:40 PM
BYU women's soccer defeats North Carolina to advance to the NCAA College Cup. (Megan Nielsen, Deseret News)
(Megan Nielsen, Deseret News)
BYU Women’s Soccer is advancing to the College Cup for only the second time in program history.
After the first 20 minutes of action against North Carolina on Friday night, that didn’t appear to be a likely outcome. But No. 1-seed BYU roared back to pull off an improbable 4-3 comeback victory over the Tar Heels.
#BYU women's soccer defeats North Carolina 4-3 to advance to the College Cup. 😲⚽#BYUwSOC #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/p6XflCkgYm
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) November 25, 2023
BYU was down 3-0 after the first 20 minutes as UNC star player Ally Sentnor booted two goals and Maycee Bell got the scoring started for the Tar Heels, giving them a commanding 3-0 lead.
BYU went into the halftime locker room with that same deficit. The high-powered BYU offense didn’t come to life until the 61st minute when Bella Folino got the Cougars on the board.
INCREDIBLE!!!! 😼
4 SECOND HALF GOALS CARRY (1) @byusoccer_w OVER (3) UNC TO ADVANCE TO #WCollegeCup!!!! pic.twitter.com/ZIh4RMHQ4A
— NCAA Soccer (@NCAASoccer) November 25, 2023
Entering the 81st minute, BYU still trailed 3-1, but the miracle comeback went into effect.
Brecken Mozingo scored a goal off her right foot to bring BYU within one. Then, one minute later, Bella Folino came through again to give BYU the equalizer in the 82nd minute.
After the equalizer goal, it felt like BYU was in a spot to take down the Tar Heels in an overtime period. But BYU wanted the victory in regulation.
On the snowy pitch, BYU stayed in attack mode. In the 89th minute, senior captain Olivia Wade-Katoa did the unthinkable, scoring the go-ahead goal to put BYU in front.
BYU women’s soccer defeats North Carolina 4-3
The sell-out crowd at South Field erupted as BYU pulled off a miracle comeback against a North Carolina program that has won the most National Championships in NCAA Women’s Soccer history.
Incredible win for #BYU to take down a powerhouse program like North Carolina.
UNC is a 21-time champion in the NCAA Tournament. BYU roared back from down 0-3 to win 4-3.
Two wins away from a National Title.#BYUwSOC #NCAASoccer
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) November 25, 2023
As the final seconds ran off, BYU fans stormed the field and celebrated the Cougars big victory.
The win is BYU’s first in program history against North Carolina. UNC defeated BYU last year in the Sweet 16 and back in the Elite Eight in 2012.
Next up: College Cup in Cary, North Carolina
Now BYU got its revenge and sets its sights on the Tar Heels’ backyard in Cary, North Carolina, host of the College Cup.
BYU will face Stanford in the National Semifinals on Friday, December 1.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X and Threads: @Mitch_Harper.
