Overview

• Erin Matson, 23, becomes the youngest college head coach to win a national championship, leading the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill (UNC) to the field hockey title.
• The Tar Heels secured the program’s 11th national championship and its fifth in six years after a double-overtime penalty shootout against the Northwestern Wildcats.
• Matson, who won the same competition as a UNC player last year, took up the head coach role this season shortly after graduating, replacing Karen Shelton who retired after 42 years in charge of the program.
• Matson was part of three undefeated seasons with the Tar Heels as a player, and has played for the US national team since she was 17.
• The championship match, which ended in a 2-1 victory for UNC, was attended by 3,200 people – the biggest crowd in the program’s history.