2025 North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team
| 2025 North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer | |
|---|---|
 | |
NCAA Tournament, Round of 16 | |
| Conference | Atlantic Coast Conference |
| U. Soc. Coaches poll | No. 13т |
| TopDrawerSoccer.com | No. 16 |
| Record | 13–6–2 (6–4–0 ACC) |
| Head coach |
|
| Associate head coach | Chris Ducar (30th season) |
| Assistant coach | Tracey Leone (2nd season) |
| Home stadium | Dorrance Field |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | W | L | T | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 2 Stanford †‡y | 9 | – | 0 | – | 1 | .950 | 21 | – | 2 | – | 2 | .880 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 Notre Dame y | 8 | – | 1 | – | 1 | .850 | 15 | – | 2 | – | 3 | .825 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 3 Duke y | 7 | – | 3 | – | 0 | .700 | 17 | – | 5 | – | 1 | .761 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1 Florida State y | 6 | – | 2 | – | 2 | .700 | 16 | – | 2 | – | 4 | .818 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 8 Virginia y | 6 | – | 2 | – | 2 | .700 | 14 | – | 3 | – | 5 | .750 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 24 Louisville y | 6 | – | 2 | – | 2 | .700 | 13 | – | 5 | – | 3 | .690 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 13т North Carolina y | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | .600 | 13 | – | 6 | – | 2 | .667 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| California | 4 | – | 2 | – | 4 | .600 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 8 | .632 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wake Forest y | 4 | – | 3 | – | 3 | .550 | 11 | – | 5 | – | 4 | .650 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NC State | 4 | – | 4 | – | 2 | .500 | 5 | – | 9 | – | 4 | .389 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Clemson y | 4 | – | 4 | – | 2 | .500 | 8 | – | 6 | – | 5 | .553 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SMU | 2 | – | 6 | – | 2 | .300 | 8 | – | 8 | – | 2 | .500 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pittsburgh | 2 | – | 8 | – | 0 | .200 | 6 | – | 10 | – | 2 | .389 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Miami (FL) | 1 | – | 7 | – | 2 | .200 | 7 | – | 8 | – | 3 | .472 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boston College | 1 | – | 7 | – | 2 | .200 | 5 | – | 8 | – | 5 | .417 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Syracuse | 1 | – | 8 | – | 1 | .150 | 5 | – | 9 | – | 4 | .389 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 0 | – | 8 | – | 2 | .100 | 4 | – | 10 | – | 4 | .333 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † – Conference champion ‡ – 2025 ACC Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA Tournament As of December 9, 2025 Rankings from United Soccer Coaches Poll Source: The ACC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2025 North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill during the 2025 NCAA Division I women's soccer season. It was the 49th season of the university fielding a program, all of which have been played in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Tar Heels were led by second-year head coach Damon Nahas and played their home games at Dorrance Field in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
The Tar Heels began the season ranked number one overall in the United Soccer Coaches poll, but lost their season opener at Tennessee. Despite winning their other game during opening week, they fell to 12th in the poll. They lost their third match of the season at Georgia. This saw them drop to 22nd overall. They would go on to win their next five games, and only allowed one goal over that span. The only Power 4 opponent they defeated in that stretch was Alabama. They fell to 23rd at the end of the non-conference season, but rose to 19th to start ACC play. They defeated Virginia Tech but fell to 7th ranked Florida State and 2nd ranked Notre Dame. They rebounded with defeats of Boston College and Pittsburgh before losing their rivalry match at 14th ranked Duke. They won three of their last four ACC games, with the lone defeat coming at Miami. They finished the regular season unranked.
The Tar Heels finished the season 13–6–2 overall and 6–4–0 in ACC play to finish in seventh place. They finished one place out of qualifying for the ACC Tournament. It was only the second time in their history that they did not qualify for the tournament. The Tar Heels received an at-large bid to the 2025 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament where they were an un-seeded team in the Vanderbilt Bracket. They avenged a season opening loss to third-seed and 14th ranked Tennessee in the First Round. They advanced over sixth seed and 18th ranked Texas Tech in a penalty shoot-out in the Second Round. They fell to second seed and 5th ranked TCU in another penalty shoot-out in the Round of 16 to end their season.
Previous season
The Tar Heels finished the regular season 14–4–0 and 7–3–0 in ACC play to finish in fourth place. As the fourth seed in the ACC Tournament, they hosted fifth seed and twevlth ranked Virginia Tech in the First Round and defeated them 2–0. They faced-off against rival Duke for the third time in the season, and got their first win 2–1 to make the Finals. The Final was a regular season rematch between the Tar Heels and Florida State. The Tar Heels again lost, this time 3–2, to finish as runners up. The Tar Heels received an at-large bid to the 2024 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament where they were the second-seed in the Florida State bracket. They defeated USC Upstate in the First Round, Santa Clara in the Second Round, and sixth-seed Minnesota in the Round of 16. Upsets elsewhere in the bracket saw the Tar Heels host Penn State in the Quarterfinals. The Tar Heels won 2–1 in overtime to advance to the College Cup. Their semifinal match-up was a fourth meeting on the season with Duke. The Tar Heels won this one 3–0, making the record on the season 2–2, with Duke winning both regular season matches, and the Tar Heels winning both postseason matches. They faced off against Wake Forest in the final, and defeated them 1–0 to win their twenty-second national title and first in twelve years. The Tar Heels' final record was 22–5–0.
Offseason
Departures
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clare Gagne | 0 | GK | 6'0" | Graduate Student | Orono, Minnesota | Graduated; signed professional contract with Kansas City Current[1] |
| Evelyn Shores | 2 | MF | 5'9" | Sophomore | Atlanta, Georgia | Signed professional contract with Angel City FC[2] |
| Trinity Armstrong | 3 | DF | 5'6" | Freshman | Frisco, Texas | Signed professional contract with San Diego Wave FC[3] |
| Maddie Dahlien | 5 | FW | 5'9" | Junior | Edina, Minnesota | Signed professional contract with Seattle Reign FC[4] |
| Emerson Elgin | 6 | DF | 5'7" |  Junior |
Franklin Lakes, New Jersey | Graduated; signed professional contract with Gotham FC[5] |
| Makenna Dominguez | 11 | MF | 5'3" | Senior | Sierra Madre, California | Graduated |
| Olivia Migli | 16 | DF | 5'4" | Graduate Student | Isle of Palms, South Carolina | Graduated |
| Bella Sember | 18 | FW/MF | 5'7" | Senior | Centerport, New York | Graduated; signed professional contract with KIF Örebro[6] |
| Aria Nagai | 19 | MF | 5'3" | Graduate Student | Herndon, Virginia | Graduated; signed professional contract with Utah Royals[7] |
| Avery Look | 22 | DF | 5'10" | Graduate Student | Chapel Hill, North Carolina | Graduated |
| Asha Means | 39 | DF/MF | 5'7" | Senior | Charlotte, North Carolina | Graduated |
| Alexa Wojnovich | 44 | DF/MF | 5'7" | Graduate Student | Chapel Hill, North Carolina | Graduated |
Incoming transfers
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liya Brooks | 0 | GK | 5'9" | Sophomore |
Eugene, Oregon | Washington State[8] |
| Ryann Brown | 12 | DF | 5'8" | Graduate Student | Laguna Niguel, California | Princeton[8] |
| Emilie Maihs | 15 | GK | 6'1" | Sophomore | Bevergern, Germany | Otero College[9] |
| Shaela Bradley | 43 | MF | 5'5" | Sophomore | La Center, Washington | Rutgers[10] |
Recruiting class
| Name | Nationality | Hometown | Club | TDS Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Jennifer Dearie FW |
 |
Ponte Vedra, Florida | Jacksonville FC |   [11]
|
Bella Devey MF |
|
Draper, Utah | Utah Avalanche | [12]
|
Eres Freifeld FW |
|
Los Angeles, California | Slammers FC HB Koge | [13]
|
Riley Kennedy MF |
|
Raleigh, North Carolina | North Carolina Courage (ECNL) | [14]
|
Djem Koppelaar DF |
 |
Eindhoven, Netherlands | PSV Eindhoven | N/A[15] |
Lauren Malsom FW |
|
Marietta, Georgia | FC Prime | [16]
|
Cameron Maynor DF |
|
Atlanta, Georgia | Concorde Fire SC | [17]
|
Hope Munson DF |
|
Holladay, Utah | Utah Avalanche | [18]
|
Squad
Roster
- As of February 3, 2026[19]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Team management
| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Athletic Director | Bubba Cunningham |
| Head coach | Damon Nahas |
| Assistant Coach/General Manager | Chris Ducar |
| Assistant Coach | Tracey Bates Leone |
| Director of Operations | Tom Sander |
| Assistant Director of Operations | Corey Emerick |
Source:[19]
Schedule
| Date Time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | Site (Attendance) City, State | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exhibition | |||||||||||
| August 6 6:00 p.m. |
No. 1 | UNC Wilmington | None Reported[22] | – |
Dorrance Field Chapel Hill, NC | ||||||
| August 9 6:00 p.m. |
No. 1 | No. 10 Wake Forest | None Reported[23] | – |
Dorrance Field Chapel Hill, NC | ||||||
| Non-conference Regular season | |||||||||||
| August 14* 7:00 p.m., SECN |
No. 1 | at Tennessee | L 0–2 | 0–1 |
Regal Soccer Stadium (1,197) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
| August 17 1:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 1 | Siena | W 5–0 | 1–1–0 |
Dorrance Field (1,127) Chapel Hill, NC | ||||||
| August 21* 6:30 p.m., SECN+ |
No. 12 | at Georgia | L 0–2 | 1–2–0 |
Turner Soccer Complex (1,802) Athens, GA | ||||||
| August 24* 12:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 12 | Rice | W 4–0 | 2–2–0 |
Dorrance Field (2,640) Chapel Hill, NC | ||||||
| August 28* 4:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 22 | UNC Greensboro | W 4–0 | 3–2–0 |
Dorrance Field (1,101) Chapel Hill, NC | ||||||
| August 31* 12:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 22 | Milwaukee | W 4–1 | 4–2–0 |
Dorrance Field (1,471) Chapel Hill, NC | ||||||
| September 4* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 23 | Alabama | W 4–0 | 5–2–0 |
Dorrance Field (1,640) Chapel Hill, NC | ||||||
| September 7* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ |
No. 23 | at James Madison | W 3–0 | 6–2–0 |
Sentara Park (823) Harrisonburg, VA | ||||||
| ACC regular season | |||||||||||
| September 11 7:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 19 | at Virginia Tech | W 2–1 | 7–2–0 (1–0–0) |
Thompson Field (1,024) Blacksburg, VA | ||||||
| September 17 7:00 p.m., ACCN |
No. 18 | No. 7 Florida State | L 0–1 | 7–3–0 (1–1–0) |
Dorrance Field (3,749) Chapel Hill, North Carolina | ||||||
| September 24 6:00 p.m., ACCN |
No. 22 | at No. 2 Notre Dame | L 3–4 | 7–4–0 (1–2–0) |
Alumni Stadium (1,072) Notre Dame, IN | ||||||
| October 2 7:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 19 | Boston College | W 3–1 | 8–4–0 (2–2–0) |
Dorrance Field (1,377) Chapel Hill, North Carolina | ||||||
| October 5 4:00 p.m., ACCN |
No. 19 | Pittsburgh | W 3–1 | 9–4–0 (3–2–0) |
Dorrance Field (2,451) Chapel Hill, North Carolina | ||||||
| October 12 1:00 p.m., ACCN |
No. 19 | at No. 14т Duke Rivalry |
L 2–3 | 9–5–0 (3–3–0) |
Koskinen Stadium (1,541) Durham, NC | ||||||
| October 17 6:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 23 | at SMU | W 3–0 | 10–5–0 (4–3–0) |
Washburne Stadium (2,036) Dallas, TX | ||||||
| October 23 7:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 23 | at Miami (FL) | L 1–2 | 10–6–0 (4–4–0) |
Cobb Stadium (533) Coral Gables, FL | ||||||
| October 26 1:00 p.m., ACCNX |
No. 23 | Syracuse | W 4–2 | 11–6–0 (5–4–0) |
Dorrance Field (1,401) Chapel Hill, North Carolina | ||||||
| October 30 8:00 p.m., ACCN |
NC State | W 1–0 | 12–6–0 (6–4–0) |
Dorrance Field (2,561) Chapel Hill, North Carolina | |||||||
| NCAA Tournament | |||||||||||
| November 14* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ |
at (3) No. 14 Tennessee First Round |
W 3–1 | 13–6–0 |
Regal Soccer Stadium (1,721) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
| November 20* 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ |
vs. (6) No. 18 Texas Tech Second Round |
T 1–1 (4–3 PKs) 2OT | 13–6–1 |
Garvey-Rosenthal Stadium (1,543) Fort Worth, TX | |||||||
| November 24* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ |
at (2) No. 5 TCU Round of 16 |
T 1–1 (3–4 PKs) | 13–6–2 |
Garvey-Rosenthal Stadium (1,684) Fort Worth, TX | |||||||
| *Non-conference game. #Rankings from United Soccer Coaches. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern. | |||||||||||
Awards and honors
| Recipient | Award | Date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tessa Dellarose | Pre-season All-ACC Team | August 7 | [24] |
| Kate Faasse | |||
| Olivia Thomas | |||
| Linda Ullmark | |||
| Kate Faasse | Top Drawer Soccer Preseason Best XI First Team | August 12 | [25] |
| Tessa Dellarose | |||
| Olivia Thomas | Top Drawer Soccer Preseason Best XI Second Team | ||
| Linda Ullmark | |||
| Bella Devey | Top Drawer Soccer Preseason Best XI Freshman Team | ||
| Tessa Dellarose | Hermann Trophy Preseason Watchlist | August 14 | [26] |
| Kate Faassee | |||
| Olivia Thomas | ACC Co-Offensive Player of the Week – Week 8 | October 7 | [27] |
| Olivia Thomas | All-ACC First Team | November 5 | [28] |
| Kate Fassse | All-ACC Third Team | ||
| Linda Ullmark | |||
| Hope Munson | ACC All-Freshman Team |
Rankings
| Week | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| United Soccer[29] | 1 (8) | 12 | 22 | 23 | 19 | 18 | 22 | 19 | 19 | 23 | 23 | RV | — | Not released | 13т | ||
| TopDrawer Soccer[30] | 1 | 6 | 15 | 19 | 14 | 11 | 11 | 19 | 17 | 23 | 18 | — | — | — | 25 | 16 | 16 |
References
- ^ "Kansas City Current signs trio of collegiate stars Two U17 World Cup stars and a NCAA National Champion set to join Kansas City". Kansas City Current. January 8, 2025. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ Pelit, Asli (July 10, 2025). "Angel City bets on future, signing Evelyn Shores: 'When we break through, it's going to be spectacular'". The Athletic. Retrieved July 10, 2025.
- ^ "San Diego Wave FC Signs 17-Year Old Defender Trinity Armstrong from University of North Carolina". San Diego Wave FC. January 16, 2025. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
- ^ "Seattle Reign FC Signs UNC Forward Maddie Dahlien". Seattle Reign FC. January 8, 2025. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
- ^ "Gotham FC Signs Betos, Elgin as Injury Replacement Players". Gotham FC. April 12, 2025. Retrieved April 12, 2025.
- ^ "Amerikanska talangen Bella Sember klar för KIF Örebro" (in Swedish). KIF Örebro DFF. January 4, 2025. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- ^ "Utah Royals FC Signs Three Players to Short Term Contracts". RSL. March 4, 2025. Retrieved July 18, 2025.
- ^ a b "2025 Women's Division I Transfer Tracker". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved July 5, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Soccer Adds Top JUCO Goalie Emilie Maihs For 2025". goheels.com. University of North Carolina Athletics. April 24, 2025. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Soccer Adds All-Big Ten Freshman Shaela Bradley". goheels.com. University of North Carolina Athletics. June 16, 2025. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Jennifer Dearie". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Bella Devey". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Eres Freifeld". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Riley Kennedy". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "2025 Women's DI International Signees". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
- ^ "Lauren Malsom". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Cameron Maynor". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Hope Munson". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ a b "2025 Women's Soccer Roster". University of North Carolina Athletics. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
- ^ "2025 Women's Soccer Schedule". goheels.com. University of North Carolina. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
- ^ "Women's Soccer Announces 2025 Slate". goheels.com. University of North Carolina. July 21, 2023. Retrieved July 21, 2024.
- ^ @uncwomenssoccer; (August 6, 2025). "Rain or shine, it's always good to be back at Dorrance🤩 And even better when there's a birthday @edenbretzer 🩵 #GoHeels" – via Instagram.
- ^ @uncwomenssoccer; (August 9, 2025). "Exhibitions complete, regular season 🔜 #GoHeels" – via Instagram.
- ^ "North Carolina Selected 2025 ACC Women's Soccer Preseason Favorite". theacc.com. Atlantic Coast Conference. August 7, 2025. Retrieved August 7, 2025.
- ^ "2025 Women's Division I Preseason Awards". topdrawersoccer.com. Top Drawer Soccer. August 12, 2025. Retrieved August 12, 2025.
- ^ Wilburn, Sarah (August 14, 2025). "2025 Women's Hermann Trophy Watch List Announced". United Soccer Coaches. Retrieved August 14, 2025.
- ^ "ACC Announces Women's Soccer Player of the Week Honors". theacc.com. Atlantic Coast Conference. October 7, 2025. Retrieved October 7, 2025.
- ^ "2025 All-ACC Women's Soccer Awards Announced". theacc.com. Atlantic Coast Conference. November 5, 2025. Retrieved November 5, 2025.
- ^ "United Soccer Coaches Top 25 NCAA DI Women — National". unitedsoccercoaches.org. United Soccer Coaches. December 9, 2025. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
- ^ "College Soccer National Rankings". TopDrawerSoccer. TopDrawer Soccer. December 9, 2025. Retrieved December 9, 2025.