Joshua Michel
The last time the men’s soccer team played North Carolina was in last year’s ACC Tournament, and the Tar Heels were ranked fourth in the country and N.C. State was 12th. Carolina won the match 1-0 on a free kick in the 61st minute.
Now it’s a new year and when the two teams take the field tonight in Chapel Hill, only the Heels will carry a high national ranking.
In the latest SoccerAmerica.com poll, Carolina (4-0) is No. 1 and the Wolfpack (2-2) is unranked. But despite the polls and early-season records, it is still a rivalry match unlike any other, according to senior defenseman Rami Ghanayem.
“It’s a different level,” Ghanayem said. “All the rules go out the window — all tactics go out the window. It’s just who has the bigger heart and who wants it. It’s about who has the greatest desire for the win.”
For Ghanayem, who played at Riverside High School in Durham, this match holds extra personal meaning.
“I grew up playing with these guys,” he said. “So for me it’s even a different level — it’s undescribable. It’s my time to shine. I see the lights and all my friends. It’s like a game in the backyard, and you want to win.”
As for the match itself, the situation is similar to the first match between the two last year. The regular season match between the two teams a year ago saw Carolina carry a No. 2 national ranking into the match against the unranked Pack. That match ended in a 2-2 tie.
So for the Pack, the role of underdog is one it has played in the past.
“You look at us, and you can see we are very loose,” coach George Tarantini said. “We’re working. And our goal is to get better every game…we know they are a very good team.”
Ghanayem took it a step further and said he enjoys the underdog role, but does not believe his team is inferior to Carolina’s.
“I don’t think we are the underdog,” Ghanayem said. “But if people want to call us the underdog, then we’re happy to be the underdog. But for us, we know we have more heart, and we have talent.”
This season, State has had trouble producing offensive chances and putting the ball in the net. In the first four matches the Pack has managed only four goals while getting shutout twice. And three of the four goals came in Sunday’s 3-2 comeback victory against American.
Given the slow offensive start to the year, Tarantini said he is focused on getting the team to attack the net.
“To win this game, we need to score,” Tarantini said. “We need to generate opportunities to score. I don’t know how many goals UNC has [given up] so far. But I know we need to score.”
Ghanayem echoed the coach’s cry for offense.
“We got to get down the field,” Ghanayem said. “You can’t win the game unless you score. So we’ve been working on it all week and now it’s time to implement what we’ve practiced.”
Sunday’s win, though, showed Tarantini something about his young team that he said gives him confidence heading into the rest of the season.
“This team wants to fight,” Tarantini said. “We have a team that can grow and learn. It gives me a lot of hope for the future.”
Part of that future is freshman midfielder Alan Sanchez, who scored the final two goals against American. Sanchez said he understands the importance of the next match and he is prepared for his first experience in the State-Carolina rivalry.
“I know UNC is the No. 1 team in the nation,” Sanchez said. “So I know playing this team will be a big challenge for me. So I just want to come out strong like I was an upperclassman…I’ve been coming out stronger every game. And just because it’s Carolina doesn’t mean I’m going to come out any easier. I’m going to come out the same way.”
As for whether he expects to go to Chapel Hill and win the game, Sanchez said, “They expect to run over us, but they’re going to have a surprise. So yeah, it’ll be a good game.”