North Carolina looks different than it did when Syracuse came away with a victory in their matchup in September.

Former Olympian Charlotte Craddock is now lining up at forward for the Tar Heels. The Orange now has to find a way to stop Craddock — who has scored 17 goals in 22 games — with a trip to the national championship on the line.

“She’s a very good player, she’s fast and she can score,” SU head coach Ange Bradley said. “But we’ve grown tremendously in our confidence and our off-ball movement, our ability to find each other in the passing lanes.”

SU is heading to the final four for the second time in program history. No. 4 Syracuse (19-2) will face No. 1-seed North Carolina (22-1) at 2 p.m. on Friday in Norfolk, Va. The winner will compete in the national title game on Sunday against the winner of the matchup between No. 2 Princeton and No. 6 Maryland.

Craddock missed the early part of the season due to NCAA eligibility issues. But regardless of the scoring threat Craddock poses, the Orange is looking forward to accepting the challenge.

SU will look to become the first Syracuse women’s program to win a national championship.

“It’s really exciting to get to our first final four as a team,” SU back Iona Holloway said.

The team is coming off a balanced scoring outing in the 5-2 win against Penn State with four different players scoring. Syracuse’s ability to keep the ball moving throughout the game helped it earn the win.

The Orange’s focus has now shifted to executing its strategy against North Carolina.

The Tar Heels have played consistently all year, losing only one game, which came against Syracuse. Both teams were held scoreless for 70 minutes, but the Orange edged UNC for a 1-0 victory.

“They may think that last time was a fluke, but we know that it wasn’t,” Holloway said. “We held them (scoreless) in regulation and beat them in overtime, and winning against a ranked opponent like that is never a fluke.”

Bradley made sure the team is aware Craddock is able to produce goals in a short amount of time. She admits the addition of Craddock adds a new dynamic to an already-powerful team, but she also believes her team has the skills and experience necessary to win.

SU will be counting on goaltender Leann Stiver and the back line of Holloway, Laura Hahnefeldt and Anna Crumb to keep the Tar Heels attack in check. Against Penn State in the quarterfinals, Stiver accumulated a season-high 13 saves to help the Orange earn a 5-2 win.

“I play a lot better under pressure,” Stiver said. “I think this (last) weekend was a total defensive effort; I couldn’t have done it without Laura, Iona and Anna.”

Stiver says she lives for these moments and that the team has been working toward the postseason all year.

“I think when it comes down to the playoffs, we play really well as a defensive unit,” Stiver said.

Along with the playoffs come emotions. Midfielder Liz McInerney said she leaves everything on the field so she has no regrets in her last year.

The excitement of the moment is starting to sink in for everyone on the team, but hits home for many of the seniors.

“It hit me at the Big East (Championship); I cried all the way to the semifinal,” McInerney said. “It’s been hitting me for the last few weeks now.”

Bradley said the players must put all their thoughts about the future and past aside, saying if they don’t focus on what’s going on in the moment, it will pass them by.

The team realizes the competition and level of intensity is at an all-time high in the final four, so it must make sure it can rise to the occasion.

Said Bradley: “There are four teams vying for one thing. It’s going to come down to who executes under pressure, who wants it more and who’s prepared.”

Published on November 15, 2012 at 3:02 am

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