N.C. Soccer HOF To Honor UNC Tar Heels

The North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame will recognize the women’s soccer program at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill at the annual Hall of Fame banquet scheduled for Saturday, January 25, 2014, at the North Raleigh Hilton in Raleigh, NC.

The Tar Heels will be the third honoree into the NCSHOF National Champions Hall of Honor, which recognizes national championship teams.

The Tar Heels, who have won 21 NCAA Division I women’s soccer championships, and one AIAW national title, will be honored as a program rather than honoring any one team.

The success of the UNC program is unprecedented in women’s collegiate soccer, and the Tar Heels are the only team to qualify for every NCAA postseason tournament since the NCAA first sponsored the national championship playoffs in 1982. They have won 21 of the 31 national titles, the last coming in 2012.

Nominees for the annual individual inductions were selected at the HOF Committee meeting and that list has been distributed to all living members of the N.C. Soccer Hall of Fame for their participation in the final voting. The 2014 inductees will be announced in October.

Currently, there are 46 members of the N.C. Soccer Hall of Fame, which was established in 1997. Anson Dorrance, head coach of the Tar Heels, along with Carla Overbeck, Mia Hamm and Siri Mullinix, all members of UNC national championship teams as well as U.S. National Team veterans, are among the 46 current N.C. Soccer HOF members.

Previously, two other teams have been honored by selection to the N.C. Soccer HOF National Champions Hall of Honor: the 1981 ASL champion Carolina Lightnin’ and the 1977 Raleigh Spartans, winners of the U18 US Youth Soccer Francis J. “Frank” Kelly Cup national championship in 1995.

The public is invited to attend the annual HOF banquet in January. Ticket information will soon be available on the HOF website. The North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame’s website can be found at www .ncsoccerhalloffame.com