■ North Carolina and Maryland played each other for the third time this season yesterday in the NCAA championship game, so it was a good bet that the game was going to be close because the teams know each other so well.
Cameron Brown, a sophomore for the Tar Heels, said that playing a team three times isn't easy.
"Today was a tough game because we played them three times and we knew how they are going to play and we just couldn't stop their style of play," Brown said.
■ Corben Bone of Wake Forest made the 11-player College Cup team that was announced after yesterday's championship game.
The Deacons were eliminated on Friday night by North Carolina 1-0.
Also, five members of the Wake Forest team were named All-America by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.
In addition to Bone, Sam Cronin and Marcus Tracy were named to the first team, Ike Opara to the second team and Cody Arnoux to the third team.
■ Coach Sasho Cirovski of Maryland used a unique recovery method after Friday's 1-0 overtime semifinal win against St. John's.
"At 11 p.m. on Friday night, the hotel we are at didn't have an indoor pool so we used the outdoor pool as a cold tub," Cirovski said. "Imagine 12 players in there and the water was probably 45 degrees, but that was a key to their recovery."
■ Coach Elmar Bolowich of UNC said on Saturday that the game would probably come down to one play, and he was right. Graham Zusi's goal after a deflected shot was the play of the game.
"Fatigue sometimes comes into play and Maryland got their play and we didn't," Bolowich said.
Bolowich also said that he was hoping his Tar Heels would get more shots in the second half because they had the 25-mph wind at their backs.
"I would have liked to have seen more shots, but Maryland is a strong defensive team and they didn't give us many looks," Bolowich said. "So I give them credit for that as well."
■ Omar Gonzalez, the defensive MVP of the College Cup who is from Dallas, helped the Terps to their school-record 15th shutout this season.
During their 16-game win streak to end the season, the Terps allowed six goals.
"I really don't know what to say," Gonzalez said about coming home and winning his first national championship. "When that final whistle blew I just stopped and didn't go anywhere and I took it all in. I saw everyone running around me and I looked at my family and all the fans that came here from Maryland.… I think I'm a little blacked out."
■ The NCAA gave the attendance as 6,594 for the final game at spacious Pizza Hut Park, which holds 21,000…. Freshman goalie Zac MacMath ended the season with a 19-1 record and 12 shutouts…. Cirovski, who is always trying to push for more coverage of soccer, had this response after answering questions from reporters yesterday. "Thank you very much for covering college soccer," he said.
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