No. 1 North Carolina and No. 9 Notre Dame men’s soccer stumble in major ACC upsets

For a second straight Friday, the No. 1 Division I men’s soccer team was upset by an unranked opponent in one of two top-10 upsets.

The top-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels lost a road match to in-state rival North Carolina State, 1-0, and No. 9 Notre Dame dropped a thrilling top-20 battle at Duke, 3-2.

North Carolina (9-2-1, 4-1-0) outplayed NC State (8-3-2, 2-3-1) in nearly every statistical category, but the Wolfpack was the team that could cash in when it had the chance. Forward David Loera scored in the 53rd minute on one of only two shots NC State mustered in the match for the lone goal. North Carolina had 18 total shots and had 11 corner kicks to the Wolfpack’s two corners.

WHAT A NIGHT!@PackMensSoccer knocks off the nation’s top-ranked team and rival UNC-Chapel Hill in front of a PACKed home crowd.#GoPack #STATEment pic.twitter.com/70qJgcpkZ7

— NC State Athletics (@PackAthletics) October 13, 2018

When you beat the No. 1 team, you celebrate with the No. 1 fans!! #GoPack #ncaasoccer pic.twitter.com/EukBbuHtw1

— NC State Men's Soccer (@PackMensSoccer) October 13, 2018

NC State will almost surely be ranked this coming week after its second win this year against a top-five team and its third against a top-15 team.

Elsewhere in the Triangle, the Duke Blue Devils took advantage of home field to knock off the ninth-ranked Irish and move into a tie with Notre Dame in the ACC standings. After an exciting first half that featured four goals, Duke striker Daniele Proch slotted one into the back of the net in the 61st minute for a 3-2 victory.

[RECAP] WINNING IS FUN. #Duke takes down No. 9 Notre Dame at home. Make that 4 straight for the Devils.
📰 | https://t.co/OnyWcpBlTX
📸 | https://t.co/ddM1ZtRpqm#GoDuke pic.twitter.com/mWZnFH1RCb

— Duke Men's Soccer (@DukeMSOC) October 13, 2018

This is the Blue Devils (8-3-1, 3-2-0) second top-10 victory in as many weeks following its win against then-No. 10 Virginia. Notre Dame (7-4-1, 3-2-0) saw its four-game winning streak come to a end Friday. It was a crucial lose for the Irish with just three games remaining in ACC play, making hopes of a conference title much more difficult.

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