Junior center back Maycee Bell touched home the game-winning goal in overtime to lift No. 2 North Carolina to a 2-1 women's soccer win over No. 10 Stanford Sunday before 2,796 fans at Dorrance Field.
The Tar Heels improve to 6-0, while the Cardinal fell by the identical score for the second time in a row to drop to 3-2.
It was Carolina's second overtime win at home this season and gave Anson Dorrance his 895th career win as head coach of the UNC women.
The Cardinal took a 1-0 lead in the 12th minute on an Andrea Kitahata goal after a long pass from Maya Doms.
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UNC evened the score four minutes into the second half. Emily Colton's shot, one of her game-high eight, was saved by Stanford goalie Katie Meyer, but Emily Moxley collected the rebound and fed Emily Murphy, who beat Meyer with her third score of the season to the tie the game.
The Tar Heels outshot the Cardinal, 11-3, in the second half, but the game remained deadlocked through regulation.
Early in overtime UNC earned a corner kick, which Paige Tolentino directed to the front of the goal. Tori Hansen headed the ball, which was stopped by a Stanford defender, but Bell stepped forward and knocked the loose ball past several Cardinal just across the goal line for the winner 6:10 into the extra period.
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It was Bell's second goal of the season.
The win snapped Stanford's three-game winning streak over the Tar Heels. This was the first meeting between UNC and Stanford since the 2019 NCAA championship game, which the Cardinal won by penalty kicks after neither team scored a goal. UNC leads the series, 10-3-3.
Carolina out-shot Stanford, 17-7, for the game and had a 7-0 advantage in corner kicks.
The Tar Heels return to action Thursday, Sept. 9, at Florida.
