Best National Championship game you could ask for, a breakdown
What Happened
The 2022 Field Hockey National Championship game between the University of North Carolina (UNC) Tar Heels and the Northwestern Wildcats is a thrilling, back-and-forth contest that comes down to a dramatic sudden-victory shootout. The game is tied 1-1 at the end of regulation, sending it to overtime. In the second half, UNC's Riley Heck makes a strong scoring attempt, but is fouled, resulting in a penalty stroke for the Tar Heels. UNC's number 12 steps up to take the stroke, but Northwestern's elite goalkeeper makes a superb stick save to keep the game tied. The first overtime period is a nail-biter, with both teams creating chances but unable to find the game-winner. In the second overtime, UNC's Riley Heck has another great opportunity, but her shot goes wide. The game then goes to a shootout to decide the national champion. Riley Heck steps up first for UNC and executes her signature spin move to score. Northwestern answers to make it 1-1 after the first round. In the second round, UNC misses the net, while Northwestern scores again to take the lead. The teams trade makes and misses in the next few rounds, keeping the shootout tied. In sudden-victory overtime, Northwestern has the first attempt but the UNC goalkeeper makes a big save. This sets the stage for Riley Heck to have the chance to win it for the Tar Heels. Heck once again goes with the spin move, and this time it proves too much for the Wildcats' goalkeeper, as the ball trickles into the net, sparking wild celebrations from the UNC players and coaches. The dramatic victory marks a storybook season for UNC head coach Aaron Manson, who just graduated last year and is now leading the Tar Heels to a national championship in her first season at the helm. As the UNC players douse Manson with the Gatorade cooler, it's clear this national title game had everything a fan could ask for - overtime, a shootout, and a fitting ending for the new Tar Heels coach.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentthe field hockey national championship was awesome everything you want in a title game
they're tied at one in ot right now and unc has a penalty stroke so that's a shot from really close
if she makes this shot unc wins in overtime and they are the champions this breakdown is brought
to you by seat geek before we get to that look at all the other cool stuff that happened in this
game watch this move she tries to pull off in the second she puts it on her stick kind of like
michigan style and hockey and tries to flip it over northwestern all over it though so cool
look at this she just pops it up onto her own stick carries it like an egg race pops it over
the goalie's head it's going to be the coolest goal ever denied by nine on northwestern so that
was an awesome moment this is how unc scored their first goal off a
corner
and they just simple no tricks no decoys no passes just boom get it to our shooter and she pops it in
they're excited about it now northwestern had a corner of their own it got saved by the defenseman
hit her in the leg that's not allowed so northwestern they got a penalty stroke and
they put it in with ease to tie the game in the third they are excited look at that just right
past her the goalie kind of gives them stick side
baits them into it now we're in overtime and 12 believe her name is riley heck she's got a great
scoring opportunity and they just maul her all over can't let her get away with that so now they
have a penalty stroke and here she comes number 12 she has a penalty stroke to win the game and i
gotta believe the odds are high that you score on these although northwestern's goalie is the best
goal in the nation i think so
this is where i started the video she's giving her stick side boom makes the stick save yeah
northwestern coach is all over it the goalie's like obviously duh of course the game continues
and watch this it does hit her stick and then goes into the post would it have gone in i think so
but it's really close uh but what a save what a moment now ot there's still some crazy moments
this pass to the middle they just missed that one and then unc's got it here the backhand save made
there was just awesome attempts watch this the true freshman on northwestern fast as hell she's
racing in dumps it to her teammate the goalie on unc comes all the way out for the kick safe
what was she doing there that's chancy imagine if the player just made one move got around her and
wins but i was watching this live and that that moment made me go oh my goodness this is a great
game northwestern
has the ball again and this is a clinic she's gonna bust right through those two defenders
she's gonna toe drag heck and then oh can't get the shot off can't get the little like dribbler
pass off but the moves on number two on northwestern is awesome stick handling she splits
the gap there blows past those two defenders now i believe it's her and number 14 so that's not
riley heck and you can see her go little toe tap to get around her
the ball again and she's going to bust right through those two defenders she's going to toe
the ball goes around her one way she goes around her the other way and then they just close in
before she can take the shot but it does dribble number three and you're thinking oh my god is this
it no not it so they go to double overtime north carolina great chance here spin move oh wide and
that would end it so we go to a shootout five players from each team shoot one-on-one against
the goalkeeper coin toss determines which team goes first if it's tied after the first series
they go to sudden victory
one for one these dudes are pumped and riley heck's got the first shot and she's going to try
her patented spin move and easy easy easy goal you can see what she does here she you know
middle school dance style gets up on the goalie and then wraps her leg around the goalie's legs
which gives her the knowledge of where her clear path is because the goal is not past her she kind
of wrapped her up and just throws it in scores the first one and she's going to go to the next
one north carolina's up northwestern though spin move all the same underneath the goalie's stick
she kind of was there she's all over but it's underneath the little candy cane stick so north
carolina oh a little pump fake backhand through the goalie but misses the net tied at one number
two for northwestern stick handler yes spin moves underneath the goalie's glove this time so north
carolina's had one go under the stick one go under the net and she's going to go to the next one
little glove or mitt i don't know what that is all right so northwestern's up and the northwestern
goal is aggressive i love that she's making the first move she's like it's a one-on-one but i'm
gonna force you to do some stuff runs all the way out easy and then this oh north carolina little
kick save trips her they had to feel fun all right so northwestern's up and this girl on on north
carolina is like i'll just run past you if you're gonna do that all right speedy number three what's
you doing dancing
backhand she kind of lost the ball before she wanted to shoot this cracked me up both coaches
on northwestern are keeping track is it not on the scoreboard they're both keeping track
they can't look at each other's they can't look at each other's notes uh pretty funny so we're
tied up with one round left no spin move goes arrive northwestern scores on this they win the
whole thing she tries the spin move loses the ball she can still score here just a timed one-on-one
does not goalie gets back up into place the time was winding down so we go to sudden victory
everything you want in a championship game they're noivus they're noivus they're noivus
northwestern is gonna go first here she comes needs to get it in backhand post up spinorama
the goalie crawls gets in front of it a huge save huge save because now north carolina gets to throw
riley heck out there she was their leading point scorer
and she scored on her first shootout with that tight spin move is she gonna do it again is she
gonna do it again yes she's gonna do it again north carolina when she throws her stick i really
like this see the goalie everyone is running towards riley heck because she scored the game
winning goal but the goalie she is gonna veer towards i'm guessing the goalie she's the only
one going the other way because them goalies stick together you know they're all celebrating
having fun i could that's unbelievable
national championship game two overtimes and then sudden victory shootout wild awesome and then the
goalies hug because they get along oh and then the goalie says riley get in here and riley gets in
there and so does that girl and they hug and the coolest story aaron mattson gotta be one of the
youngest coaches ever to win a national title she was on the team last year as a player when they
beat northwestern in the championship game her first year as head coach
right after graduating head coach she coaches them to a championship the gatorade bathroom they get
her pretty good crazy story crazy championship game if you're too tough to admit that that was
good sporting then get out of here if not subscribe to the channel i appreciate you
watching and thank you to c geek for sponsoring this video and you can use code john boy and get
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she coaches them to a championship the gatorade bathroom they get her pretty good crazy story crazy
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