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ACC Semifinals: (Match Night Commentary)

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 By JOHN BOSCHINI

The semifinals of the ACC tournament are shaping up to be two of the best matchups of the season as No. 20 Virginia takes on red-hot No. 3 Maryland at 5:30. Following that game will be No. 3 North Carolina squaring off against No. 21 Boston College. Both games are being played at the WakeMed Park in Carey, NC and can be viewed on the ACC website. On top of the being one of the most coveted conference trophies in the country this weekend will feature several professional prospects.

I'll be providing live commentary during both matches so feel free to leave your thoughts about the game in the comments section below. Be sure to let us know where you're following from and enjoy the match!

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Final- UNC1, Boston College 0. Nowhere near as dominating for the Tar Heels tonight but it will do. Boston College looked awful. Can not wait for the final between Maryland and UNC on Sunday. Should be a firecracker. I'm off to the post-match press conference but be sure to check out SBI for more coverage on the ACC tournament

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90th minute- Final minute, UNC has a free kick inside the center circle. This one is over

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89th minute- Less than two minutes left. BC has a free kick in the center circle.

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88th minute- UNC sub: Alex Walters comes in for Robbie Lovejoy

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87th minute- Farfan gets absolutely leveled in the midfield but advantage is played. Urso gets a hard shot on goal but it's right at Luthy. Murphy is given a yellow for the tackle. 

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86th minute- Bekker has a shot from just in front of the box but it goes wide.

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84th minute- Worley whistled for offsides. BC looks despondent. They don't look likely to get a winner.

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81st minute- Corner kick for UNC. Ababio puts it over and its a goal kick for BC. Dixon is on for Josh Rice.

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80th minute- UNC sub: Farfan in for Walters

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80th minute- BC Sub: Reddick out for Dunn

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78th minute- Martinez with a blistering shot from a tight angle but Luthy parries and Martinez can't put in the rebound. 

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76th minute- BC Just Wide! Worley with BC's best chance of the night but it goes begging. UNC sub: Lovejoy on for Dixon

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75th minute- Dixon with an acrobatic attempted header but it's cleared by BC

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74th minute- Injured player was Patrick Chin. Is replaced by Issac Taylor. That's a big loss for BC

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74th minute- Urso sends a other shot wide. Boston College player down injured holding his groin. Laying back on his number so we can't see who it is yet.

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73rd minute- Josh Rice gets disposessed inside the box with an excellently timed tackle. UNC looking dangerous. 

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70th minute- UNC sub: Farfan out, Walters in. UNC has a corner but BC clears. Urso gets a free shot from just outside the box but puts it over.

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68th minute- Patrick Chin, who's been dangerous all night, puts a dangerous cross in but BC can't do anything with it. 

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67th minute-  BC corner kick. They needed to make this one count. but it's cleared by UNC

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65th minute- UNC subs: Josh Rice in for Martin Murphy. BC: Edvin Worley in for defender Greg Bryer. BC is pushing hard for a goal

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62nd minute-  UNC stepping up defensive pressure. No Eagle has much free space.

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60th minute- Boston College having trouble keeping sustained pressure. Dixon had the ball alone to the right side of goal but his first touch let him down.

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59th minute- Murphy is taken down about 45 yards out, dead center in front of goal. Luthy claims the ensuing free kick.

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56th minute- Martinez with a ridiculous run along the left side but no one is home for the cross. On the other end, Goodwin has to come way off his line to clear before Rugg can poke it home.

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55th minute- Goal UNC! Kirk Urso's shot was spilled by Luthny. Enzo Martinez's first effort goes off the post but he gets his own rebounds and buries it from close range. UNC up 1-0.

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53rd minute-  UNC with a throw in in BC territory. Let's see if the Heels can do anything it

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51st minute- Dixon with a weak, weak shot from far out but forces the first save of the night for either team

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4th minute- More of the same so far this half. A lot of pretty passing in the midfield that goes nowhere.

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48th minute- BC with a free kick from just outside the center circle. Forces a corner for BC

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46th minute- Action is back underway. 

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Halftime- Both teams back on the field. Getting ready for the second half. 

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Halftime- Just how little offense is there? Neither team has managed a shot on goal yet tonight.

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Halftime- An ugly, conservative affair thus far but it showed some signs of life later on. Edvin Worely looked dangerous for BC and Alex Dixon was UNC's only offensive threat. Expect UNC to come out more aggressively in the second half.

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45th minute- But it goes nowhere and that's the half with the score tied at 0-0

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45th minute- Carolina gearing up for one last attack

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43rd minute- Carolina with a throw in in an advance position. Farfan tries a bicycle kick and gets it all wrong.

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42nd minute- Urso's shot is off target and we're getting close to halftime with the score still 0-0

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40th minute- Firesale for Carolina. Three subs, Lovejoy, Brown and Hornsby and are in for Dixon, Gafa and Murphy and BC sub: Issac Taylor for Worely

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38th minute- BC looking a lot more comfortable in possession. Charlie Rugg puts in a cross but Edvin Worely can't get to it and UNC clears.

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35th minute: Dixon with yet another dangerous run into the box but BC is up to the challenge. He looks dangerous tonight.  

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34th minute- Both teams are playing physical and the ref, for the most part, is letting it go.

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32nd minute- Dixon shows his speed by chasing down a long pass but gets whistled for a dubious foul inside the box. Questionable call there but Dixon would have to have pulled something magical to score from there.

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30th minute- Kirk Urso's long free-kick is too powerful and Luthy collects.

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30th minute- Farfan with a nifty, yet ultimately, run to just inside the box but his poor cross finds no one.

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28th minute- Aburmad puts Fitzpatrick in on goal for BC but Goodwin collects. On the other end Dixon gets tests Luthy from a tight angle but the BC keeper is up to the test.

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27th minute- Farfan with a fantastic run into the box but Murphy can't handle short-range cross. Should have been 1-0 there.

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25th minute- McCarty with a cross that goes nowhere. Ball comes out to Farfan but he skies the shot. Kirk Urso coming in for Stephen McCarthy. Urso is a great wing player so he could be dangerous.

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25th minute- Worley with a long ball for Boston College but Goodwin collects it easily.

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21st minute- Game rarely leaving the midfield at the moment. Both defenses doing a good job of preventing passes into advanced positions. 

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19th minute- BC with a free kick in UNC's half. Great area for a cross. Heels clear nervously. Throw in for BC.

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17th minute- gameplay is improving as both teams settle down. Some nice, flowing soccer going on. Bekker was in on goal but Luthy was able to come out and precent the shot for UNC.

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15th minute- Rose is posessed by Worley and BC surged forward on the counterattack. But UNC did a good job of tracking back and BC's eventual shot from range was soft and wide.

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13th minute Rose with a golden shooting opportunity from the top of the box but passes it up for another dribble and turns the ball over to BC. 

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11th minute- Dixon shows his dribbling skills to get into a great shooting position but his effort is wide.

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10th minute- Boston College with some offensive life. A couple of shots were deflected by UNC defenders before Worely puts his shot over the bar.

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9th minute- Don't forget to let me know if you're following along to tonight's commentary by saying where you're following from in the comments section.

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7th minute- Boston College with a defensive setup. At least 10 men behind the ball at all times

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4th minute- Chin puts a cross in for BC but it goes through untouched.

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4th minute- Pretty much the entire match has been played in the BC half. Eagles defense holding strong though.

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2nd minute- McCarthy wearing a face protector due to a cheekbone injury. He's already gigantic. This just makes him look more intimidating. McCarty (different) forces a corner

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1st minute- And we're off with Boston College possessing first

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Pregame- National Anthem about to start. Hopefully the sprinklers will be respectful 

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Pregame- Here are the starting lineups for tonight as we get close to kickoff

NORTH CAROLINA

———–Dixon——————Anibaba———–

–McCarty——McCarthy—-Martinez—–Farfan–

——-Rose——–Murphy———Dixon—-Ababio–

———————-Goodwin————————–

Boston College

———-Worley———Rugg—————–

–Taylor—-Fitzpatrick—Aburmad–Murphy-

–Ager—-Bryer—-Bekker—–Chin———-

————-Luthy——————-

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Pregame- Allright, we're back for tonight's second semifinal as North Carolina takes on Boston College. UNC is on an 11-game win streak. The Tar Heels only draw of the conference season came against Boston College, who nicked a 1-1 draw in Boston. UNC will be enjoying home field advantage, playing less than 50 miles from its campus. 

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Final- Maryland 2, Virginia 0. Absolute domination for the Terrapins. I'm off to the post-match press conference. I'll be back some post-match thoughts and a live commentary of UNC vs. Boston College.

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90th minute- Less than 30 seconds left to go. 

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89th minute- T.J. Cyrus carded for his tackle on Mullins.

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88th minute- Mullins gets taken down on a run forward and both teams come together. No punches are thrown but Virginias obviously frustrated with how they've performed.

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87th minute- MacMath with a fine save off a shot from distance. Dude's been an absolute rock for Maryland tonight.

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86th minute-  Virginia pouring men forward but there's not much offensive unity going on.

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84th minute- Virginia puts a ball into the box and Maryland scrambles to clear it. Nervy moment for the Terps. Maryland sub: Casey Townsend on for Jake Place

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81st minute- Maryland with a free kick on the left side close to goal but Restrepo handles it easily.

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80th minute- Will Bates skies his header. That was one of the best chances of the game for Maryland.

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78th minute- Townsend cuts inside and then lofts it over the bar. Maryland sub: Jake Place on for Casey Townsend. Virginia sub: Bryan Lima for Sean Hiller.

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75th minute- Ownby with a poor shot from long range. Cavaliers seem like they have have given up at this point. Mullins gets taken down again. Virginia better be careful before they get a player sent off.

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74th minute- As Stertzer leaves, Mullins replaces him. A dangerous free kick for Maryland but it's cleared.

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74th minute- Mike Volk with a horriffic takle on John Stertzer. Frankly lucky to get away with a yellow on that one. Stertzer still down on the turf clutching his ankle. He looks to be in pain. I'd be surprised if he can continue as he limps off the field.

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73rd minute- Ownby receives the ball on the left side of the penalty area but his cross his blocked. Greg Monaco puts the resulting corner over the bar.

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72nd minute- Seems very difficult for Virginia to come back now. I'd be worried if I were a Cavaliers fan with this squad on such bad form going into the NCAS's. Ownby with a yellow card after taking down Torress

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71st minute-  Goal Maryland! Jason Herrick with a point-blank finish off a beautiful cross.

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69th minute- Kassell has the ball just outside the penalty area but can't beat last defender. IT's getting pretty frenetic now.

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68th minute- Jumper passes to the side to Ownby who glots it into the box. A number of orange shirts in there but Maryland clears barely.

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67th minute- Span in on the flank but is whistle for offsides. Ownby taken down about 30 yards from goal by Billy Cortes, who's carded.

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66th minute- Kassel with a cross into the area but its cleared by Virginia. The Terps desperately want an insurance goal. They're not sitting back

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64th minute- Virginia defense much stronger this half. Townsend has the ball on the sideline but is taken away. That would have led to a cross in the first half

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62nd minute- The crowd grew considerably after halftime. The supporters are making some noise. Really good atmosphere here.

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61st minute: Virginia has had a few half-chances in the lst five minutes. Jumper is picking out teammates with lasers.

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59th minute- Jason Herrick taken down 30 yards from goal. Herrick is the one standing over the ball. His shot is high and wide.

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58th minute- Virginia sub Brian Ownby coming on for Felipe Liberos. Ownby makes an immediate impact. Almost beating Macmath with a perfect through ball. This is better from Virginia.

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56th minute: Sean Murnane makes a long run but is disposessed easily right outside the box. Patrick Mullins is down injured but is sitting up. He'll still be replaced by Paul Torres. Hopefully he's ok. He's been solid for Maryland tonight

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55th minute- A collission in mid air and Hunter Jumper is down for Virginia. Not sure if any action is going to be taken against Kassell. It looks like no but the two players share some words.

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52nd minute- Virgnia with a long throw in but Maryland clears. The entire Terp back line is allowing Virginia some space near the goal but it hasn't cost them yet.

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50th minute- Maryland dominating posession in the midfield but can't do much with it. Jimmy Simpson with some nifty footwork into the Terp box but his second touch is a bit heavy and MacMath claims it.

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43rd minute- Virgnia with another turnover. The Cavaliers are having serious cohesion issues right now

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47th minute- The sprinklers are off and we're back underway. Nothing you can do but laugh in that situation. 

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47th minute- And the sprinklers are on! Play is suspended. Fans are fleeing from the spray.

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46th minute- And we're off for the second half at WakeMed Park

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Halftime- Teams back on the field and are getting ready for the second half. 

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Halftime- and the referee blows the whistle for the intermissiong. Maryland players applauding MacMath for that amazing save. Both goalkeepers have been outstanding in the opening half. Townsend, Torres and Kassel have been threatening all night and Virginia are lucky to only be down a goal. Only Virginia player of note was Brian Span. Aside from the final five minutes, when the Cavaliers showed some life, no one dressed in orange made much of an impression.

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44th minute- MacMath save! With a diving stop to his left. Poor penalty by Dimas but that was clutch from the All-ACC keeper

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44th minute- Virginia penalty! Liberos gets taken out by Cortes and Dimas steps up to take the penalty

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43rd minute- Forbess' free kick to close to the goal and Restrepo reels it in.

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42nd minute- A couple of chippy fouls happening as teams start to get tired. These teams don't particularly like each other. Maryland with a free kick from just left of the goal and about 25 yards out. Forbess to take it.

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40th minute- 5 minutes left in the half and Maryland has a free kick after Alex Lee was taken down inside his own half. Now Virginia has a free kick and Restrepo sends the Cavaliers deep but nothing comes of it.

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39th minute- Maryland sub: Helge Leikvang comes on for Matt Kassell

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37th minute- Goal Maryland! Herrick puts home a shot from close range after Virginia couldn't clear Townsend's corner. Maryland up 1-0

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36th minute- Mullins with a deflected shot from way out that forces a great save from Restrepo. Corner for Maryland

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35th minute- Will Bates with a dangerous, skidding shot from the top of the penalty box but MacMath does well to get a fingertip on it. Corner for Virgnia. MacMath grabs it.

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32nd minute- Maryland sub. Karou Forbess comes in for Doug Rodkey.

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30th minute- 15 minutes left to go in the opening half.

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30th minute- Span with a cross that goes over the crossbar. He's looking dangerous tonight.

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28th minue- Restrepo with a free kick inside his own half and launches it deep but Maryand clears easily. Virginia resorting to the long ball awfully early.

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26th minute- Maryland looking threatening inside the box with Townsend and Kassell having a few chances

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24th minute- Maryland off the post! Townsend's header clanks off the crossbar. Cross came from Mullins, who's showing why he's the ACC rookie of the year. That was close.

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22nd minute- Townsend whistled for clinging on to a Virginia player's shirt. Span manages to get a shot off a cross but it goes begging and Span gets up limping.

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19th minute- Virginia with a free kick from 40 yards out. Ball is lofted into the box but can't find a Virginia shirt.

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19th minute- Restrepo is up and looks allright. Maryland earns a corner but purposefully kicks it out of bounds due to Restrepo's injury.

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18th minute- Both teams are showing a lot of toughness in the midfield but are being conservative going forward. Jason Herrick goes into the box and gets shoved into Restrepo. The Virginia keeper is down after getting an elbow to the head. Ref doesn't seem to be reaching for a card. 

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17th minute- Corner for Maryland but Restrepo punches it away impressively 

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16th minute- Brian Span with a shot from about 25 yards out but its easily saved by MacMath. That was the first shot on goal of the game I think.

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14th minute- Free kick for Maryland near the center circle. Maryland bats it around the penalty area but can't get anything on target.

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13th minute- Torress with a cross into the box but Restrepo handles it easily

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12th minute- MacMath with a rare error, kicking his goalkick out of bounds.

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11th minute- Hunter Jumper with a hard shot for Virginia from the top of the box but it goes wide.

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8th minute- John Stertzer's powerless header goes over the bar and a goalkick for Virginia. Less than a minute later Jason Herrick directs Casey Townsend's ross into the side netting. That was close. MAryland the more threatening team early on.

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6th minute- Throw-in for Maryland on the far sideline. Almost finds Torres at the top of the box but Virginia clears

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4th Minute- Casey Townsend breaks into the box for Maryland but his cross is cleared.

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 3rd Minute- End to end soccer in the opening few minutes but neither team really threatening.

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1st Minute- And we're off. Sort of a small crowd here in Cary tonight but that's to be expected with no local teams in this semifinal. Expect a bigger crowd once UNC takes the field.

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Pregame- Sort of disapointing to see Patrick Mulloins left on the bench for Maryland but he'll be out on the field soon enough.

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Pregame – Here are the starting lineups

MARYLAND

——Herrick————Townsend——Cortes——

—-Stertzer—-Kassell—–Rodkney——Torress—

————-White———Lee——–Kemp———-

————————MacMath————————

VIRGINIA

—————-Span—————-Bates—————

—Simpson——Murnane——Liberos—–Damas—-

—–Jumper—–Volk——–Hiller——-Monaco—–

————————–Restrepo———————–

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