Doubling up on Canisius, No. 2 North Carolina coach Jenny Levy recorded her 300th career win by leading her Tar Heels to a 16-8 victory at the US Lacrosse headquarters in Sparks, Md. She becomes the third coach in Division I history to win 300 games, joining Navy’s Cindy Timchal (477 wins) and Princeton’s Chris Sailer (375 wins).
"It is hard to believe our Carolina lacrosse program has achieved a milestone of 300 wins – it feels like yesterday when we got win number one!" Levy said after the game. "A huge thank you and congratulations to the many great assistant coaches, student athletes and families, support staff and administrators who have all contributed to this milestone.
"I am proud of our culture: one of hard work, pride, enthusiasm and love of Carolina, each other and the game of lacrosse," Levy continued. "Winning games is important, it is what we are judged on, but the relationships built are what will be with us a lifetime. We consistently have former players and families come out to games and support our current team, our alumnae weekends are packed with alums coming back to Chapel Hill, and our alumnae assist our current players network professionally.
"The connections that we have created through Carolina lacrosse is what makes it so special,” she added. “What an opportunity, what an honor."
Senior Molly Hendrick tied her career highs with six goals, four of which came in the 9-2 first half, and seven points in the win. Senior Sammy Jo Tracy had a team-best six draw controls.
Canisius was led by junior Erica Evans, who scored four goals, all in the second half. The Griffs won the second period 7-6, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the seven-goal deficit.
PHOTO BY GREG WALL
Syracuse overcame a seven-goal deficit to stay undefeated and top Virginia 16-15 in a key ACC battle.
Syracuse Stays Undefeated with Comeback Win Over Virginia
After trailing 11-4 at halftime, No. 4 Syracuse flipped the script in the second half to secure a 16-15 victory over unranked Virginia.
"That was just an incredible comeback, an incredible game," said Syracuse coach Gary Gait. "We fought back. I thought the key was the end of the first half. We got a couple [goals]. We showed we could score. That gave us a little energy going in to halftime.
“To come out in that second half and get the first one – my mindset was we score three, they get one, [and] we'll get this done by the end,” he added. “I think that's pretty close to how it worked. That was an effort that came from some incredibly tired athletes that dug down deep within themselves, found what they had and gave their all and made some great plays at the end of the game. They believed in each other and finished that game. Very proud of their effort and happy with the W."
The Cavaliers opened the game with a 9-1 run in the first 13:14 before the Orange carried an 8-1 advantage spanning both halves, with three goals tailed in man-up offenses. Syracuse finished the game with two more three-goal spurts as junior Riley Donahue recorded the game-winner with 4:06 remaining.
Senior Devon Parker led the Orange with five goals, while sophomore Natalie Wallon had a hat trick. Donahue, plus freshmen Cara Quimby and Mary Rahal, added two goals apiece.
Junior Kasey Behr led the Cavaliers’ charge with five points on four goals and an assist, while sophomore Maggie Jackson also scored four goals. Sophoomore Avery Shoemaker and senior Kelly Reese finished with four points each.
Virginia won the overall draw battle 18-14, but it was the second half performance of the Orange on the draw – a 10-6 advantage for Syracuse – that led to the comeback victory. The Orange, now 7-0 on the season, also had a 19-13 edge on ground balls.
Florida Cruises Past Towson
Traveling north to 32-degree weather was no challenge for the defenders of the swamp as No. 3 Florida downed No. 16 Towson 13-6 thanks to a 13-8 advantage on the draw and a program-best 47 shots.
"What a great opportunity for us to come to Maryland and beat an experienced team like Towson in front of a lot of orange and blue in the stands,” said Florida coach Amanda O’Leary. “It took a complete team effort to get the win today, and we're looking forward to regrouping in the next couple of days to get ready to face a talented Loyola team on Wednesday."
Gators senior Sammi Burgess tallied a career-high seven points on three goals and four assists, while classmate Mollie Stevens also added a hat trick, one assist and six draw controls. Freshman Brianna Harris had two goals and two assists.
Sophomore Carly Tellekamp had a team-best four points (two goals, two assists) for the Tigers.
PHOTO BY JOHN STROHSACKER
Senior Sammi Burgess tallied a career-best seven points in Florida's win over Towson.
Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Top 20 Scoreboard
No. 5 Stony Brook 13, No. 11 Northwestern 5
No. 10 Colorado 20, Marquette 6
No. 15 Johns Hopkins 15, Furman 5
Small College
Bowdoin Upsets Amherst in Overtime
With less than three minutes remaining in overtime, Annie Glenn scored the game-winning goal to lift unranked Bowdoin to a season-opening 7-6 win over No. 7 Amherst in Division III. The Polar Bears were led by a three-point effort from Hannah Hirschfeld. Amherst’s leading scorer was Julia Crerend.
Nike/US Lacrosse Division II Top 20 Scoreboard
No. 11 Rollins 16, No. 17 Stonehill 11
Nike/US Lacrosse Division III Top 20 Scoreboard
No. 1 Middlebury 19, Connecticut College 4
No. 2 Cortland 17, Clarkson 5
No. 3 Trinity 12, Williams 6
No. 8 Hamilton 8, No. 10 Colby 5
No. 12 Tufts 12, MIT 5
No. 15 William Smith 7, Geneseo 5
No. 18 Ithaca 16, St. Lawrence 6