North Carolina Tar Heels-Men's Soccer

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Unscored upon in 2005, No. 2 North Carolina (4-0-0) opens the Atlantic Coast Conference portion of its schedule versus rival NC State (3-2-0) at 7 p.m. Wednesday at SAS Soccer Park in Cary. The Tar Heels are unbeaten in their last 10 meetings with the Wolfpack and posted a pair of 2-0 victories last season. Both teams are coming off impressive weekend performances, as the Tar Heels topped Rutgers and South Carolina, while NC State beat No. 7 St. John's and College of Charleston in Durham.

CAROLINA AT A GLANCE
• Following wins over Rutgers and South Carolina last weekend, the Tar Heels are 4-0 for the first time since 1987. Carolina advanced to the national semifinals that season and won its first eight matches under Anson Dorrance. This year's start marks the Tar Heels' best under Elmar Bolowich.
• Carolina has set a school record with four straight shutouts to open a season. The last time the Tar Heels blanked four straight opponents was the national championship season of 2001.
• Senior Ford Williams has played all 360 minutes in goal and has four consecutive shutouts. The school record for consecutive shutouts by a goalkeeper is six, set by Watson Jennison in 1992.
• The Tar Heels return seven starters and 17 letterwinners from last year's team that went 10-9-2 and tied for third in the ACC with a 4-3-0 league mark.
SCOUTING THE WOLFPACK

After opening the season with back-to-back losses, NC State brings a three-match winning streak into Wednesday's meeting. Senior forward Aaron King leads the way with five goals in five games, while Bryant Salter and Ronnie Bouemboue have also contributed offensively. Seniors Aaron Sanders and Jorge Gonzalez have split time in goal, as State owns a 1.34 goals against average.

SERIES WITH NC STATE
Carolina has a 44-19-10 lead in the all-time series with NC State, including an 8-0-2 record in the last 10 meetings. The Pack's last win in the series was a 3-1 victory at home in 1997. The Tar Heels posted two 2-0 wins a year ago, including a victory in the ACC quarterfinals at SAS Soccer Park.

DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE
In addition to not allowing a goal this season, the Tar Heel defense has suffocated opponents and allowed just 22 shots in four matches. Senior goalkeeper Ford Williams has had to make just six saves on the year, three of which came versus South Carolina. The Tar Heels own a 24-15 edge in corner kicks and a 65-22 advantage on the shot chart this season. Returnees Andre Sherad and Ted Odgers have steadied the center back positions, while Michael Harrington and David Boole moved to outside back to shore up the back line.

ASHE RESUMES SCORING PACE
Junior forward Corey Ashe led the Tar Heels with nine goals a year ago and he has picked up where he left off a year ago with goals in three straight games, including the game-winning scores versus both Richmond and Rutgers. For his efforts, he was named to College Soccer News' National Team of the Week. Ashe now has 16 career goals, including seven game-winners in just 39 career games.

SHUTOUT STREAK STILL ALIVE
After struggling on the defensive end to open last season, the Tar Heels have pitched a shutout through their first four matches and set a school record for consecutive shutouts to open a season. The UNC record for consecutive shutouts is six set in 1992.

CAMPBELL TOPS SCORING CHARTS
Freshman Scott Campbell leads the Tar Heels with seven points through four games. The attacking midfielder has two goals and three assists on the year and netted the game-winner versus South Carolina Sunday. Campbell scored four points last weekend with a pair of assists on Corey Ashe goals and a goal of his own versus South Carolina. Campbell and Michael Callahan have started all four matches as freshmen, while classmates Stephen Bickford and Brian Shriver have seen action in all four off the bench. Bickford earned the start versus Richmond and came through with his first collegiate goal.

POSITION SWITCH PAYS FOR BOOLE
Junior David Boole is playing outside back for the first time as a Tar Heel, and the switch is paying immediate dividends. He assisted on three of Carolina's first four goals of the season and has helped anchor a defense that has not allowed a goal yet this season. For his efforts, Boole was named the ACC Player of the Week and was chosen for College Soccer News' and Soccer America's national teams of the week on September 5. Junior Michael Harrington is also playing on the backline for the first time as a Tar Heel.

WILLIAMS CLIMBS SHUTOUT LIST
Senior Ford Williams has four shuouts this season and needs just one more to tie his single-season best of five set in each of the last three years. The Carolina record for career shutouts is 28.5 set by Michael Ueltschey from 1998-2001. The single-season record for shutouts is 12 set by Ueltschey in the national championship season of 2001.

TAR HEELS EARN HIGHEST RANKING SINCE 2002
After being ranked in the top 20 in both preseason polls, the Tar Heels currently are ranked No. 2 in the NSCAA/adidas Coaches' Poll and No. 3 by Soccer America after an impressive start. Carolina's No. 2 ranking by the NSCAA marks its highest since September 3, 2002, when it was ranked second in both polls.

BOLOWICH EARNS WIN NO. 200
In his 17th season in Chapel Hill, head coach Elmar Bolowich reached the 200-win plateau with the 3-0 win over Richmond September 4. Already the program's winningest coach, Bolowich owns a career mark of 202-112-20.

TV TIME FOR TAR HEELS
The National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), Fox Soccer Channel and 12 Division I men's soccer programs - including North Carolina - have reached an agreement to broadcast a "College Soccer Game of the Week" on Friday nights this fall The Tar Heels will be televised twice this season - at Maryland October 14 and home versus Duke October 28. Both games will begin at 8 p.m. Fox Soccer Channel is channel 144 on Time Warner Digital Cable in the Triangle area.

BICKFORD, CAMPBELL HONORED AS TOP ROOKIES
After being rated as two of the nation's top prep talents a year ago, forward Stephen Bickford and midfielder Scott Campbell were honored by College Soccer News as two of the nation's "100 Freshmen to Watch in 2005." Bickford earned NSCAA/adidas High School Player of the Year honors in 2004, while Campbell was named Miami Herald Player of the Year. Ranked among the nation's top 15 recruits by StudentSportSoccer.com, both players enrolled at Carolina in January and spent the spring training with the Tar Heels. UNC's recruiting class was also rated as No. 5 by College Soccer News.

Press Release from www.TarHeelBlue.com-The Official Site for Carolina Athletics