Meet the best college athlete in NC, and maybe the US, you’ve never heard of

The most accomplished, see-it-to-believe-it college athlete in North Carolina, and arguably the country, does not play in front of tens of thousands in any football stadium, or inside Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium or the Smith Center at North Carolina.

Off the field, she’d likely go unnoticed in most crowds. Indeed, she chose her jersey number — the No. 1 — because growing up, that number was often on the smallest jersey, and she was often the youngest and smallest among her teammates.

She’s still not all that imposing, only 5-foot-4, yet Erin Matson has come to dominate her sport in a way that few others have ever excelled in any sport in college. She’s the best college athlete that most people have never heard of in this college sports-crazy state, and to watch Matson play field hockey is to watch an artist at the ever-ascending peak of their craft.

“She’s certainly the best player we’ve ever had,” said Karen Shelton, the UNC coach who has led the Tar Heels to nine field hockey national championships in her four decades at the school. “So in my 41-year career, she’s the best — and I’ve had some really good ones.”

Matson’s list of accolades would strain the capacity of any trophy case. Or trophy room, for that matter. She’s earned national player of the year honors the past two seasons, and first-team All-American and All-ACC honors in each of the past three. She has led the Tar Heels to three consecutive national championships. She was a member of the U.S. National team at 16.

Earlier this year, the ACC Network recognized Matson, along with former UNC soccer stars Mia Hamm and Kristine Lilly, as one of top 10 female athletes in the history of the conference. The ACC was founded in 1953 but it was almost another 20 years before schools began sponsoring organized, varsity women’s teams.

UNC this year is celebrating 50 years of women’s athletics, and Matson, a native of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, is likely to leave Chapel Hill as the most decorated athlete in school history. She’d have a case for that distinction after this season, her fourth in college, yet Matson has decided to return and use the extra year of eligibility the NCAA afforded all athletes because of the pandemic.

In one way, Matson represents the evolution of women’s athletics, and 50 years of progress. In another, though, she represents the ongoing fight women’s sports endure for respect and attention, especially outside of basketball and soccer. During a recent home match, against Duke, the stands were full at UNC’s Karen Shelton Stadium, but that’s not often the norm.

Still, Matson said, “looking back it’s wild, how far we’ve come and how much more prevalent women’s athletics is.”

She described Shelton as representing “the epitome” of the evolution of women’s college sports — yet Matson symbolizes that, as well. Whenever she controlled the ball during the match against Duke, a waiting silence fell over the home crowd.

Matson often maneuvered around or through defenders with an uncommon quickness, almost gliding the way a gifted puck-handler might in ice hockey. Growing up, Matson played basketball for years and tried lacrosse, too — deciding after one practice that it wasn’t for her. She joined her first field hockey club team when she was 9, and soon was on her way.

Like a lot of her teammates, Matson now feels a responsibility to set an example for the next generation. She knows girls are watching her, the way she became inspired by older players.

“We’re definitely on the right track,” Matson said, of the evolution of women’s sports, 50 years after their formal beginning at UNC. “And obviously we want more and more little girls to pick up a field hockey stick, pick up lacrosse — any women’s sport, and feel like they can go accomplish their dreams.”

Matson continues to accomplish hers, even if she does it in relative anonymity outside of her sport.