UNC won their 22nd NCAA soccer title last night, beating Wake Forest 1-0 to lift the 2024 College Cup and end the Tar Heels' 12-year championship drought.
After a first half spent largely chasing the Demon Deacons, who outshot UNC 5-1 in that time frame, North Carolina broke through in the 62nd minute after a curling free kick from sophomore Olivia Thomas banged into the side netting.
Thomas, who only scored five regular-season goals after spending a large portion of 2024 nursing a hamstring injury, hit the gas in the postseason, ultimately tallying four goals in the NCAA tournament.
Her championship-winning strike earned Thomas the 2024 College Cup’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player award, while UNC goalkeeper Clare Gagne's trio of saves in last night's match snagged her Most Outstanding Defensive Player honors.
A dynasty revived and a new UNC coach welcomed
With last night's victory, the UNC women's soccer dynasty once again owns more NCAA soccer hardware than all other Division I programs combined, an accomplishment made even more impressive by the hurdles the Tar Heels faced in their 2024 campaign.
After 45 years as head coach, UNC's program founder Anson Dorrance retired four days before this season's kick-off. Longtime associate coach Damon Nahas was handed the interim reins, stepping in to helm the now-champion squad.
On top of the late coaching swap, the Tar Heels were still reeling from a 2023 mass exodus in which 11 players turned pro and nine transferred out of Chapel Hill.
"We call it the great migration," remarked Thomas after the win. "Transfers came in, club players came up, and we all just meshed together so well… It could've gone any direction [but] here we are and we won it all."
Last night's trophy was ultimately both a retirement gift to Dorrance and a welcome present to Nahas, who received the official nod for the permanent head coaching position just hours before the championship match.
Nahas, who now just needs approval from the UNC Board of Trustees before signing his contract, remains steadfast that the job is merely icing on this season's cake.
"This is a unique season of an extraordinary accomplishment from a group of 27 girls that most people would never have gambled on," Nahas said about his team. "I just love coaching them."
"This national championship is... a greater gift than the head coaching position here at North Carolina. I get to share this with them for the rest of our lives."