UNC at Wilmington Weekend Update
WILMINGTON, NC – This past weekend, the Tar Heels headed to the coast to take on the UNC Wilmington Seahawks in back-to-back matchups on Sept. 20 and 21.
The first game took place at the Wilmington Ice House Friday night, where the puck drop time was at 10:15 p.m. Being no stranger to late start times, the Tar Heels were able to dominate the game with high energy and an intense speed. The first goal of the game came from Nic Gingras (#9) in the first period, followed quickly by goals from Will Smith (#44) and Matt Grady (#22).
The second period held the same energy and speed from the Tar Heels with two more goals. Smith (#44) scored his second of the game, and Chandler Kotseos (#98) got on the board as well.
The Seahawks scored all three of their goals in the third period, but not without a response from the Heels. Captain Patrick O’Shaughnessy (#21) scored the Tar Heels sixth goal of the game, and Kotseos (#98) scored his second and the Heels seventh.
“It felt great to get a bunch of guys on board,” Kotseos said after the conclusion of Friday’s game.
The Heels rested after the victory as they were right back at it the next night for another 10:15 p.m. puck drop against the Seahawks.
Unfortunately, the Heels struggled to keep the energy and fell to the Seahawks 3-2 in overtime. The team played physically but felt the consequences of penalties as UNCW was able to capitalize on the power play and put pressure on the Heels.
Will Hilton (#26) scored the first goal of Saturday’s matchup in the first period. But by the third period, the Seahawks had taken the lead 2-1. The Heels did force OT with a shorthanded goal by Zach Mangel (#10), but after all six skaters for UNC and UNCW were sent to the box for fighting, the Seahawks took the win.
As the Heels look towards the rest of the season, they are hoping to make it further in both the conference playoffs and regionals this year. To do this, the Heels will have to work and pull out the wins that matter. The next of these games is coming up this weekend against Delaware on Friday Sep 27 (Get Tickets) and Rowan on Saturday Sep 28 (Get Tickets) as the Heels return to the Orange County Sportsplex.
