Sports Women’s Soccer: Givens ’20 Is Golden in Win at UNC

Abby Givens ’20 scored the game-winner in the NCAA round of 16.

Andrew Mead

More than nine minutes into overtime in Princeton women’s soccer’s NCAA Tournament game at North Carolina Nov. 19, Natalie Larkin ’18 launched a 40-yard pass over the defense, landing the ball between sprinting forward Abby Givens ’20 and Tar Heels goalkeeper Samantha Leshnak. Givens met the ball first, on one bounce, and poked it past the keeper for the golden goal in a 2-1 Tiger victory. “That pretty much goes down as one of the best moments of my life,” she said afterward.

Princeton would fall to UCLA, 3-1, in the NCAA quarterfinals Nov. 25, ending a remarkable postseason run that also included a dramatic shootout victory over North Carolina State in the round of 32 and a 4–0 shutout of Monmouth in the opening round.