6/21/25

Tar Heels run riot vs. South Carolina Girls, Sandlappers ambush North Carolina Boys

PINEVILLE, NC - It was a sun-splashed Saturday in the Charlotte vicinity as the 18th edition of the Clash of the Carolinas was staged at the OrthoCarolina Sportsplex in Pineville. The North Carolina Girls whipped their southern counterparts 6-1 in the morning contest while the South Carolina Boys stopped a 13-match winless streak against the Tar Heels with a 2-1 victory in the early afternoon match.

Simply put, South Carolina had no answers for the North Carolina attack as the Tar Heels scored on four of their first six attempts and led 4-0 at intermission. Opening the scoring was Savannah Manset of Ashley in the fifth minute as a deflected pass was directed past South Carolina goalkeeper Julia Salo of River Bluff. In the 14th minute Northwest Guilford's Morgan Stallings rifled home a nice pass from Manset to make it 2-0. Then, in the 18th minute the lead was stretched to 3-0 when Hoggard's Ellis Kelly scored and the first half scoring was rounded out in the 35th minute by Manteo's Mackenzie Flynn for a 4-0 halftime advantage. The Tar Heels wasted little time in the second stanza as Charlotte Catholic's Jordyn Miller scored in the opening minute to put a nickel on the board for North Carolina. The Sandlappers did scratch in the 63rd minute when Mauldin's Carissa Guion latched onto a pass from Amelia Spinks of Christ Church Episcopal and tallied SC's only goal. However, NC answered that score with another two minutes later by Adrianna Bonanno of Holly Springs. Guion earned Most Outstanding Player honors for South Carolina while Abby Brinker of Eastern Alamance was selected MOP for North Carolina. The win improved North Carolina's winning streak to two matches since South Carolina won in 2023. The Tar Heels lead the overall series 14-2-2 and this was the second largest margin of victory in the 18 matches.

BOX SCORE
North Carolina 6-1 South Carolina
Goals: (NC) Savannah Manset 5', Morgan Stallings 14', Ellis Kelly 19', Mackenzie Flynn 35', Jordyn Miller 46', Adrianna Bonanno 65'; (SC) Carissa Guion 63'. Assists: (NC) Manset; (SC) Amelia Spinks. Shots: NC 16-8 SC. Saves: NC 5-5 SC. Corner Kicks: NC 5-1 SC. Offsides: NC 0-0 SC. Fouls: NC 5-8 SC. Cautions: (NC) Jordyn Miller 72'. Officials: (R) Amy Balbier; (AR) Ethan McKinney; (AR) Tray Mitchell. Uniforms: (NC) Sky/Navy/Navy; (SC) White/Red/Red. Weather: 80 Degrees; 70% Humidity; 86 Feels Like. Records: (NC) 14-2-2; (SC) 2-14-2.

In the Boys' contest it was North Carolina staking itself to 1-0 lead at the half-hour mark as Croatan's Jaden Hilliard took advantage of a South Carolina miscue when left back Jay Etheredge of Gray Collegiate's short pass back was intended for goalkeeper Sean O'Neal of Oceanside Collegiate but intercepted and deposited into the net by Hilliard. The Sandlappers shook off the mistake and were rewarded just before halftime when Ashley Ridge's Beckham Harris thrust down the left flank and got to the end line where he laid the ball back to the six-yard box for an onrushing Caedon Reynolds of Wando who smashed home the equalizer. It was a tight affair in the second half but the Sandlappers made the most of some late possession and in the 83rd minute Clover's Sam Sykes took a shot that deflected off a North Carolina defender as the Tar Heels goalkeeper had already committed to the shot and the ball went in the other side of the net. The SC defense stood tall the final seven minutes to close out just their second win vs. North Carolina, and first since 2010, in the 18-year series. The Tar Heels lead the overall series 8-2-8 but eight of the last nine meetings have ended in draws (2017, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2024) or one-goal decisions (2016, 2018, 2025) making this a very competitive matchup. Cary's Santiago Escobar was named Most Outstanding Player for North Carolina and Reynolds earned the same honors for South Carolina as he scored the opening goal and registered four of the Sandlappers' eight shots on goals.

BOX SCORE
North Carolina 1-2 South Carolina
Goals: (NC) Jaden Hilliard 31'; (SC) Caedon Reynolds 42', Sam Sykes 83'. Assists: (SC) Beckham Harris. Shots: NC 6-8 SC. Saves: NC 2-2 SC. Corner Kicks: NC 2-2 SC. Offsides: NC 4-2. Fouls: NC 6-7 SC. Cautions: (SC) Lucas Loor 22', Bryson Vail 65'. Officials: (R) Kevin Maurer; (AR) Derek Guerrer; (AR) Luis Pineres. Uniforms: (NC) Sky/Navy/Navy; (SC) White/Red/Red. Weather: 86 Degrees; 53% Humidity; 92 Feels Like. Records: (NC) 8-2-8; (SC) 2-8-8.