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COLLEGE PARK, Md. – One draw. 

That was the difference between winning and losing Sunday at Maryland Stadium. 

When the ball flew from the center circle over the Terps’ offensive 30-yard line, senior attacker Caroline Steele quickly snagged it, spun across the top of the 12-meter fan and drove inside toward goal, dishing a left-handed, low-angle shot past the hips of North Carolina defender Catie Woodruff and goalie Taylor Moreno. 

All within 14 seconds – and all with a nagging injury, after tweaking her knee midway through the second half. 

“No [doubt],” Steele said of her firm decision of returning to the field. “I told [athletic trainer] Allie [Boll]. If I really need to get taped, just slap it on there.”

So, with white tape stretching from mid-thigh to mid-calf, Steele’s only draw control of the game and game-winning goal led No. 2 Maryland past No. 3 North Carolina 13-12 in double overtime.

“To come up with one draw and it happened to be the game-winning goal, I’ll take it,” Maryland coach Cathy Reese said. “But obviously, there’s a lot of stuff we need to revisit and go back to the drawing board.”

That’s because the Tar Heels dominated the draw, 21-7, while the Terps secured just one in the second half, zero in the first extra period and one in the second overtime. Despite their opponent’s commanding advantage in the midfield, the Terps avenged last season’s overtime loss to the Tar Heels exactly one year ago today in Chapel Hill, N.C. 

“We’ve matched up so many times, back to when their program began and we were back in the ACC in the mid-90s. It’s always been a battle,” Reese said. “Look at where we were last year. Same situation. We’re in overtime down there, Carolina comes up with the draw and they score.”

Their last showdown in the ACC came in 2014, when North Carolina prevailed 17-15. Since Maryland moved to the Big Ten in 2015, the Terps have won five of seven games, including Sunday’s thriller. Also within that mix is a national championship for Maryland over Carolina in May of 2015, followed by a Tar Heels title against the Terps one year later. 

In the past four games of the series, the score has been settled, with Maryland winning two and North Carolina winning two. 

Of note, in last year’s meeting, a 16-15 overtime win for UNC, the goalies combined for just 13 saves while giving up 31 goals. On Sunday, UNC's Taylor Moreno (11) and Megan Taylor (14) combined for 25 saves against 25 goals. Maryland's slight edge helped put a W in the record book. 

“Meg Taylor had a great game,” Reese said. “Love talking about her because when she has great games, that normally means great things for the Terps too. … She was phenomenal once again and obviously was a key ingredient to our success.”

In the final 3:21 of regulation, Taylor made two point-blank saves, including one with under a minute to play to help force overtime after junior attacker Kali Hartshorn knotted it at 12 at the 6:13 mark. 

Following the game, Taylor thanked her brother, Alex, a former goalie at Salisbury, for instilling in her a “calm and composed” mindset for down-the-wire, last-minute scenarios.

“I grew up with that attitude,” Taylor said. “I always say make all the saves you need to and then one or two game-changing saves. Luckily, my game-changing saves came at the end.” 

As Maryland stays undefeated, handing North Carolina its first loss on the year, Reese called Sunday's matchup a “tale of two halves."

The Terps entered halftime with a 9-4 lead behind senior midfielder Jen Giles’ team-high five points.

But then the Tar Heels dominated 8-3 in the second period, anchored by a five-goal run, featuring two goals apiece from Jamie Ortega and Gianna Bowe and the go-ahead tally from Ally Mastroianni with 12:47 remaining.

UNC's only lead of the game was silenced six minutes later when Hartshorn scored her second backhanded goal of the day.

An unusual seven-on-four scenario, presented to Maryland’s offense in the first extra period due to North Carolina being carded, then fueled a speedy victory in the second overtime. 

“There’s a lot of chaos that happened toward the end of that game, but I’m proud of our team how they handled the challenges,” Reese said. “I’m learning something every day. I wrote down you know what? I haven’t practiced seven-on-four yet.”

Although North Carolina didn’t get the result it wanted, it was a welcomed challenge for the former ACC rival. 

“As a coach, I look forward to it [and] I know our players look forward to the game against Maryland,” Tar Heels coach Jenny Levy said. “It’s not because it’s easy. It’s because it’s hard. When you play at Carolina, you’re looking forward to playing top-level opponents and Maryland’s been one of those forever.”