North Carolina men’s soccer (4-2-3, 0-1-2 ACC) defeated West Florida (2-6-1), 2-0, on Wednesday night at Dorrance Field.

UNC found a victory after creating chance upon chance with a constant press up the field that led to 16 shots, seven of which were on goal, but it lacked the clinical finishing to build a more assertive lead. 

The Tar Heels came out in the first half consistently pushing the ball up the field, particularly on the right wing to junior forward Bertil Rygaard Hansen. But crosses from the wings were rarely received in the middle of the box, resulting in quick turnovers for West Florida to break on. 

West Florida struggled to break through the back line led by senior defender Nick Lockermann, creating chances for the Tar Heels to break fast back into West Florida’s half of the pitch. 

In the 31st minute, Hansen was taken off and replaced by first-year midfielder Faraji Ramani. Two minutes later, Ramani scored his first college career goal to give the Tar Heels the lead. 

Senior forward Joschi Schelb’s high press was able to catch West Florida’s backline off guard as he intercepted a pass in the opposing third of the pitch and gained a two-on-one break towards the net with Ramani. Schelb selflessly passed to Ramani, beat the defender and quickly put it in the back of the net. 

“I don’t even know how I can explain this, but I’m so happy, I’m so excited. And I’m so excited for my team too,” Ramani said.

The two sides came into the second half with possession at 52 percent to 48 percent in the Tar Heels’ favor. But quickly after the second-half whistle, North Carolina gained steady possession and created numerous chances on goal. 

“We talked at halftime about making the better decision, not trying to finish it as early, staying on the ball more in their half of the field,” head coach Carlos Somoano said.

After fourteen minutes in the second half, the Tar Heels capitalized on a chance with a shot from inside the box by Schelb after a quick pass from senior defender Luca Nikolai to extend the lead to two. 

Chances kept coming for the Tar Heels as they dominated possession in West Florida’s third of the pitch, putting up four shots and gaining three corner kicks between the 61st and 66th minutes. 

While pressing from the Tar Heels didn’t stop the rest of the half, they weren’t able to finish another chance before the final whistle blew, leaving the score 2-0. 

The Tar Heels will face Boston College on Saturday at 3 p.m. in Boston, Massachusetts.

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