Top-ranked North Carolina survived a scare from Florida State on Sunday, twice rallying from deficits and finally prevailing in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament's title game on U.S. World Cup standout Catherine Reddick's 86th-minute penalty kick.
The Tar Heels (21-0-0) trailed at halftime for the first time this season after Kelly Rowland scored twice to give No. 9 Florida State 1-0 and 2-1 leads, but goals by Maggie Tomecka and Kendall Fletcher pulled Carolina even.
Sophomore forward Lindsay Tarpley, the frontrunner for national Player of the Year awards, added the tournament MVP to her ACC scoring title and ACC Player of the Year award. The only other player to capture all three was Mia Hamm in 1992.
Twenty other universities won conference titles on Sunday with 19 of them — all but Alabama A&M in the first-year Southwestern Athletic Conference — capturing automatic berths to the NCAA tournament. North Carolina should be the No. 1 seed when pairings are announced Monday at 4 p.m. EST on ESPN News.
Oklahoma State got a 108th-minute goal on a Nikki Wojtowicz free kick to beat Missouri in overtime of the Big 12 tournament final; Illinois received late goals from Tara Hurless and Jessica Bayne to topple Michigan in the Big Ten final; No. 20 Cal Poly got a goal and assist from Sharon Day to beat UC Santa Barbara in the Big West final; and No. 21 Villanova (Big East) and No. 16 Tennessee (Southeastern) captured tournaments on penalty kick shootouts.
Other teams capturing NCAA berths were Boston University, Central Connecticut State, No. 20 Cal Poly, Dayton, Eastern Illinois, Illinois State, Loyola-Chicago, Loyola, Md., Oakland, Navy, Stephen F. Austin, UNC Greensboro, William & Mary and Western Illinois.
A run down of Sunday's action:
America East Conference:Tournament MVP Jessica Clinton made eight saves — including a diving stop of Annie Hamel on the sixth round of penalty kicks — to lead host Boston University (12-5-5) past Maine to claim its third AEC tournament title in four years. The Terriers won the shootout, 3-2, as Emily Dionne, Melissa Shulman and Lauren Erwin connected following a 0-0 tie.
Atlantic Coast Conference: Catherine Reddick scored on an 86th minute penalty kick as No. 1 North Carolina (21-0-0) rallied to beat second-seeded Florida State, 3-2, at Cary, N.C., for its 15th successive ACC tournament title. The Tar Heels twice overcame deficits as Maggie Tomecka headed home a long Reddick free kick in the 13th minute and Kendall Fletcher finished a Lindsay Tarpley flick of Jordan Walker's pass in the 51st. The ninth-ranked Seminoles got two goals from Kelly Rowland, a header from India Trotter's cross in the seventh minute and a feed from Camie Bybee in the 28th. Reddick scored the winner after Katie Beal was whistled for a penalty kick. Tarpley was selected tournament MVP.
Atlantic-10 Conference: Tesia Kozlowski set up Jamie Yates' goal and scored another, and tournament MVP Shannon Kuhl added a third as top-seeded Dayton (14-5-2) crunched host Richmond, 3-0, to claim its third successive NCAA berth. Yates fired the Flyers ahead in the 21st minute and Kozlowski scored off the crossbar in the final minute of the first half. Kuhl's header from Katie Lowstuter's cross made it 3-0 less than 10 minutes into the second half.
Big East Conference: No. 21 Villanova (14-5-3) won its first Big East tournament title, outfiring No. 18 Boston College on penalty kicks, 7-6, after a 1-1 tie at Piscataway, N.J. The Wildcats, who upset Connecticut in the quarterfinals and squeaked past No. 7 West Virginia on penalty kicks in the semifinals, needed eight rounds to prevail in the shootout. BC goalkeeper Kate Taylor stopped Kristin Anderson's shot in the first round, but Molly Dane's fourth-round attempt was saved by Villanova keeper Chrissy Dolan. On the eighth round, Katie McGregor fired wide for the Eagles, and Erica Stewart settled things with the next shot. Janessa Jeltema gave Villanova a 19th-minute lead off a rebound, but Beth Totman's 14th goal, after Laina Ceddia hit the crossbar, evened the score in the 60th minute. Villanova's Laura Koch was chosen the tournament's defensive MVP. Totman was the offensive MVP.
Big Ten Conference: Tara Hurless and Jessica Bayne scored goals in the final 11 minutes as Illinois (16-3-2) won its first Big Ten tournament title with a 2-0 triumph over Michigan at Madison, Wis. The Illini, which also beat Michigan State and Purdue in the tourney by 2-0 scores, recorded its sixth successive shutout and 13th of the season. Hurless, selected offensive MVP, broke the tie with a shot from the flank in the 80th minute. Bayne made it 2-0 from the same spot three minutes later. Illini defender Kelly Campbell was chosen defensive MVP.
Big 12 Conference: Seventh-seeded Oklahoma State (15-4-3) claimed its first NCAA berth, beating eighth-seeded Missouri, 3-2, in double overtime at San Antonio as Canadian midfielder Nikki Wojtowicz scored on a 20-yard free kick 72 seconds before penalty kicks. The Cowgirls twice rallied from deficits, winning after Jere Boykin was fouled outside the Mizzou box. Elyse Nikonchuk, in the 10th minute, and Karen Bauer, with a 70th-minute penalty kick, gave the Tigers leads. Czech national-teamer Marcela Nova brought Oklahoma State even the first time, on a 57th-minute rebound, and Boykin forced overtime in the 80th minute after a long run followed by a give-and-go with Jolene Schweitzer. Cowgirl midfielder Cassie Lewis was selected offensive MVP and Swiss goalkeeper Kathrin Lehmann was chosen defensive MVP.
Big West Conference: Erin Martin scored early and tournament MVP Sharon Day scored late as No. 20 Cal Poly (18-1-2) topped UC Santa Barbara, 2-0, at Irvine, Calif. The Mustangs, extending their unbeaten streak to 11 games and shutout streak to six, captured their second successive NCAA berth and fourth in six years. Day's cross fed Martin at the right post in the second minute, and the freshman finished in the 85th after UCSB goalkeeper Jamie Considine whiffed while trying to clear a throughball. Cal Poly, the regular-season Big West champ, notched its 15th shutout of the season.
Colonial Athletic Association: Taline Tahmassian and Tiffany Chudoba scored first-half goals as William & Mary (14-6-2) topped Virginia Commonwealth, 2-0, at Hempstead, N.Y., to earn its 12th consecutive NCAA berth. The Tribe shut out three CAA tournament foes behind goalkeeper Nikki Villott, the tourney MVP. Tahmassian, who transferred to William & Mary after winning an NCAA title in 2001 as a freshman at Santa Clara, netted her 15th goal of the season from Ali West's throughball in the 21st minute. Chudoba scored from a VCU clearance in the 40th.
Horizon League: Loyola-Chicago, the lowest seed in the tournament, captured its first NCAA berth with a 1-0 victory over Detroit-Mercy on its home field. Katie Koning finished Megan McDonald's cross in the 31st minute, and Ramblers' defense did the rest. Loyola was seeded seventh among seven teams but upset Butler and UW Green Bay to reach the final. Detroit's Mary Parker was selected tournament MVP.
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference: Caitlin McKusker and Naomi Daniels scored first-half goals and top-seeded Loyola, Md., earned its third successive NCAA berth with a 2-0 triumph over Niagara at Lawrenceville, N.J. The Greyhounds (12-8-1) dominated the match, outshooting Niagara, 26-1. Courtney Arikian fed fellow freshman McKusker in the 20th minute, and Daniels doubled the advantage from a Jeannetta McGettigan pass in the 34th. Freshman Carolyn Kennington, who broke the Loyola season record for goals (with her 12th) in the semifinal win over host Rider, was selected tournament MVP.
Mid-American Conference: Western Michigan (13-7-1) won its ninth straight game and improved its home record to 10-0-0, overcoming an early deficit to rout Bowling Green, 4-1. Chantal Robinson scored two late goals to cement the victory and give the Broncos their first NCAA berth. Kristy Coppes fired Bowling Green ahead in the 15th minute, but Jessica Pattison one-timed a Katie Ruzinsky feed two minutes later, and freshman Nicole Primmer added the game winner in the 33rd minute. Robinson tallied in the 79th and 83rd.
Mid-Continent Conference:Top-seeded Oakland (15-4-1) toppled host Oral Roberts in the Mid-Con final for the fourth successive season, winning for the 13th time in its past 14 games. The Golden Grizzlies' 3-1 triumph, on goals by Kristi Swaving, Michigan State transfer Kelly Rieck and Norwegian forward Marianne Samdal, clinched their third successive NCAA appearance. Canadian midfielder Erica Demers was selected tournament MVP.
Missouri Valley Conference: Canadian midfielder Chrystal Johnson was selected tournament MVP after MVC co-champion Illinois State (11-5-3) beat Creighton, 5-4, on penalties following a 0-0 tie. The Redbirds made all five of their spot kicks — league MVP Heather Forsyth's was decisive — but Allison Farrington saved Creighton's fourth attempt, by Kelan Brill.
Northeast Conference: Central Connecticut State (15-2-3) captured the NEC tournament title on penalties for the second straight year, outfiring Sacred Heart, 6-5, following a scoreless draw at Moon Township, Pa. Christie Robinson's conversion on the eighth round of the shootout put the Blue Devils ahead, and goalkeeper Sabrina Mariani — the tournament MVP — halted the Lisa Harvey's try to clinch the victory.
Ohio Valley Conference: Eastern Illinois (11-5-5) won its third successive OVC tournament title, its second in a row on penalties, by outfiring host Samford, 5-4, following a 1-1 tie. Tournament MVP (and OVC Player of the Year) Beth Liesen's 20th goal of the season gave EIU a fourth-minute lead, but Samford's Lindsay Shanks forced overtime in the 88th minute. Panther goalkeeper Tiffany Groene stopped Sara Geiger's attempt on the first round of the shootout, and both teams converted the remainder of their penalties.
Patriot League: Navy (17-4-1), coached by former U.S. women's national team star Carin Gabarra, claimed its first NCAA berth after a 4-1 destruction of host American, the PL tournament's top seed. Tournament MVP Amelia Sheveland scored two goals and assisted the other. Sheveland scored from Stacy Finley's throughball in the 25th minute, had an assist on Finley's 51st career goal in the 59th, then added an insurance strike in the 80th. Sarah Hessinger also tallied for the Midshipmen.
Southeastern Conference: Tennessee connected on all seven of its shots during the penalty-kick shootout, and Katie Johnston's seventh-round attempt for Florida hit the crossbar, delivering the SEC tournament title and NCAA berth to the No. 16 Lady Vols (15-4-2). Tennessee's 7-6 PK triumph followed a 1-1 tie at Orange Beach, Ala. Jenny Jeffers, making her first collegiate start, scored the decisive penalty for the victors. Lyndsey Patterson gave Tennessee a 58th-minute lead, scoring after Keeley Dowling's header of Ali Christoph's corner kick. Dena Floyd pulled Florida even in the 75th minute, converting a penalty kick after Melissa Armado was whistled for fouling Ashley Kellgren. Florida's Robin Fulton was selected tournament MVP.
Southern Conference: Icelandic national team forward Rakel Logadottir scored one goal and assisted the other as host UNC Greensboro (14-7-2) knocked off top-seeded Furman, 2-0, for its fifth SoCon tournament title in seven years. Logadottir, the tournament MVP, scored with a shot inside the far post from the left edge of Furman's box in 26th minute. She set up Jaime Ableman's goal in the 68th. The loss was Furman's first in 16 matches.
Southland Conference: Sophia Pantazis scored from Sara Hernandez's 26th-minute corner kick and Stephen F. Austin (15-4-2) claimed its first NCAA berth with a 1-0 win over regular-season champ Southeastern Louisiana at Natchitoches, La. Canadian goalkeeper Natascia Michalezki, who notched two tournament shutouts, was selected MVP. SLU has lost in the Southland final five straight years.
Southwestern Athletic Conference:Carolyn Harvey and Lillian Phalaste scored second-half goals to lead host Alabama A&M (9-12-1) to the title in the first-year conference's tournament. The Bulldogs aren't eligible for the NCAA tournament; the SWAC won't receive an automatic qualifier until 2005, and no at-large teams with losing records will be selected. South African midfielder Florence Renyawa of A&M was chosen tournament MVP.
CIS Championship: The University of British Columbia (16-2-1) won its second successive Canadian collegiate championship — and its fourth overall — in a 5-0 rout over Ottawa (12-2-2) at Montreal. Tournament MVP Rosalyn Hicks' hat trick gave her six goals in three games for the Thunderbirds, who outscored their opposition, 14-1.