ROCK HILL, SC—The Winthrop men's soccer team will step away from league play Tuesday evening when it travels to Cary, NC to take on top-ranked North Carolina at 7 p.m.

GAME SNAPSHOT
WHO: Winthrop (3-8, 2-4 Big South) at #1 North Carolina (9-2-1, 4-1 ACC)
WHEN: Oct. 16, 2018 / 7 p.m.
WHERE: Carey, NC (WakeMed Soccer Park)
BROADCAST: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: Statbroadcast
TWITTER GAME UPDATES: @Winthropsoccer
TICKETS:  Free Admission
 
WINTHROP VERSUS THE ACC
This will be the 34^th time the Eagles face an opponent from the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Eagles are 2-30-1 all-time against ACC foe and have lost six straight to teams in the ACC with all 5-of-6 being one-goal losses. The first meeting against an ACC foe too place on Oct. 28, 1979 as the Eagles hosted Wake Forest and captured one of their two wins vs. the ACC with a 5-0 result.        

WINTHROP VERSUS THE TOP 25
Winthrop faces a nationally-ranked opponent for the 32^nd time as it looks to snap a four-game losing streak vs. Top 25 teams. This will be the second straight year the Eagles face a North Carolina team ranked in the Top 5. This will be the 16^th time the Eagles face an opponent ranked in the Top 10. The Eagles have one Top 10 victory, which came on Nov. 6, 2002 in a 2-1 overtime win over #10 Coastal Carolina in the Big South Conference championship game. The last Top 25 victory came on Oct. 13, 2015 as the Eagles defeated 25^th-ranked Radford 1-0.          
 
SERIES HISTORY VERSUS NORTH CAROLINA
The Eagles and Tar Heels meet for the 9^th time and for the second straight year during the regular season. Winthrop and UNC have met a few times in recent years for preseason exhibition games, but before meeting last season they had not faced each other since Nov. 22, 2002. That meeting was the first round of the NCAA Tournament and the first time the Eagles had ever qualified. Winthrop fell 6-0 to the 17^th-ranked Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, NC. This series dates back to Sept. 2, 1984 when the two teams first met and the Eagles pulled off a 4-3 victory. The two teams didn't meet again until 1991 and the Tar Heels have won the seven meetings since.         

THE LAST TIME THESE TWO TEAMS MET
Winthrop traveled to Greensboro, NC last year to take on North Carolina as the game took place at UNCG Soccer Stadium. The Eagles fell 4-0 as the Tar Heels scored three first half goals on their way to victory.
 
A GLANCE AT THE EAGLES
Winthrop is coming off a 1-0 win at Campbell on Saturday to keep itself alive for the Big South Conference Tournament as only the Top 6 teams make it. Freshman Jonathan Foster netted the game-winner as he scored about 10 minutes after entering the game as a sub. It was his second goal of the season and his first career game-winning goal. Another freshman shined for the Eagles as Aidan McCormick made just his second start and made six saves to earn the shutout.
 
WINTHROP LEADERS
GOALS: Alfie Rogers, Leif Estevez (3)
ASSISTS: Leif Estevez (4)
POINTS: Leif Estevez (10)
SHOTS: Leif Estevez (19)
MINUTES:  Jordi Mola (939)
 
A GLANCE AT THE TAR HEELS
North Carolina is coming off just its second loss of the season as it fell 1-0 at North Carolina State on Friday, Oct. 12. Both losses on the year were 1-0 as they also fell to #2 Indiana earlier in the year. The Tar Heels are allowing just .50 goals per game and have recorded six shutouts. Nils Bruening leads the team in points (5g, 3a) while Giovanni Montesdeoca is second with 12 (5g, 2a).     
 
10^th YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF 2008 BIG SOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP
This season the Eagles celebrate the 10^th anniversary of the 2008 Big South Conference Championship team. That team survived some of the most dramatic games in program history on its way to a 15-6-1 record overall as it fell 3-1 at William & Mary in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles captured a 3-2 win at Coastal Carolina on Nov. 5 in foggy conditions as Matt Lacey's laser from 35 yards on a counter found the upper left corner of the goal with 4:16 left in regulation. The Eagles rallied in that game from a 2-1 deficit early in the second half to clinch the regular season title. In the conference tournament (Held at Coastal) the Eagles advanced to the title game in penalties against Liberty. The title game saw the Eagles steal their third title in program history against Coastal. The Chanticleers grabbed a 3-2 lead on a penalty kick in the 87^th minute as the Eagles scored with just 21 seconds on the clock to force overtime and then in the 101^st minute Daniel Revivo buried a service to the back post for the golden goal victory.

BIG SOUTH PRESEASON POLL
Winthrop was picked sixth in the Big South preseason poll as High Point was voted as the favorite with 7-of-9 first-place votes. High Point was followed by Radford, Campbell, Presbyterian College and Gardner-Webb. Tied for 7^th was UNC Asheville and Longwood while USC Upstate was voted 9^th. The top six teams at the end of the regular season qualify for the Big South Conference Tournament.

WHAT'S AHEAD
Winthrop stays on the road with one of its final two league games at Radford on Saturday, Oct. 20 at 3 p.m.