CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The second-ranked North Carolina women’s lacrosse team earned a top-20 win Saturday, beating No. 19 Boston College 15-13 in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup on a sunny afternoon at Fetzer Field. The Tar Heels improved to 9-1 overall and 2-0 in ACC play with the win, while BC fell to 8-4 (1-3 ACC).

“Boston College is a great team,” UNC coach Jenny Levy said after her team pulled out the win. “They play a lot of seniors and a lot of juniors who have played together for a long time.”

Senior Molly Hendrick and junior Marie McCool led UNC with three goals each. Senior Sydney Holman, junior Ela Hazar and sophomore Kara Klages each scored two, and the Tar Heels got single goals from senior Sammy Jo Tracy, junior Maggie Bill and sophomore Caroline Wakefield.

Recent history would suggest that when UNC and Boston College square off in women’s lacrosse, it’s going to be exciting. Carolina won 13-12 on the road last year, and the Eagles left with a 10-9 overtime win the last time they visited Chapel Hill. Saturday’s game followed suit from the opening minutes. After BC’s Kayla O’Connor scored in the second minute of play, UNC’s Hazar got back-to-back goals to give the Tar Heels a 2-1 lead. The Eagles tied it at 2-2 four minutes later, and the Tar Heels didn’t lead again until the second half.

Near the end of the first half, BC stretched its lead to three, 6-3. Carolina got a shot of momentum before halftime when Holman scored on a free position shot with one second on the clock, but they still trailed 6-4 at the break. “We were down and turning over the ball and not capitalizing on the great defense we were playing,” Levy said. “At that point the players need to step up and do their job and understand what’s going on on the field.”

The Tar Heels came out of the break and scored 19 seconds into the half to close the gap to one. Hendrick’s free position shot goal made it 6-5. BC answered quickly, with Kate Weeks scoring her fourth of five goals on the day to again give the Eagles a two-point cushion, 7-5 with 28:14 to play.

Klages, who had scored just twice in the season’s first nine games, scored back-to-back goals within a 21-second span to tie the game at 7-7 and inspire her teammates on the sidelines to fire up a round of the “Tar!” “Heels!” cheer with the fans in the stands. BC retook the lead at 8-7 but Carolina answered with a man-down goal from Tracy, assisted by Klages, and the Tar Heels never trailed again. Tracy’s goal kicked off a 5-0 Carolina run that put UNC up 12-8 with 17:13 to play. Boston College got two in a row to inch back within two, but UNC used a three-goal run to pull ahead by five, 15-10. The Eagles scored three straight in the final four minutes to make the final score 15-13.

Senior goalkeeper Caylee Waters finished with 12 saves and provided a steadying influence late in the game as the Tar Heels fought to preserve their lead.

“The play of Caylee down the stretch when things start to get crazy is something that’s her strength,” Levy said. “We know she’ll play great at that point.”

Penn State Finishes with a Flurry

Trailing 8-4 at halftime and 10-8 with 18:19 remaining, No. 6 Penn State reeled off eight unanswered goals to defeat Johns Hopkins 16-10 at Homewood Field on Saturday. Madison Carter (six goals) and Steph Lazo (five) combined to score 11 goals, including seven during the final eight-foal flurry. Abby Smucker added three goals for the Nittany Lions, who improved to 10-1 (2-0 Big Ten).

Terps, Buffs Stay Unbeaten

No. 1 Maryland and No. 4 Colorado, the only undefeated teams remaining in Division I women’s lacrosse, both cruised to wins Saturday.

The top-ranked Terps (9-0) got hat tricks from four different players and defeated No. 19 James Madison 16-11. They led 9-3 at halftime.

The fourth-ranked Buffs (10-0) blew out Fresno State 18-6.  Senior Johnna Fusco tied her career high with five goals to lead Colorado.

Florida Flexes Big East Muscle

Junior Shayna Pirreca had three goals and three assists to tie her career high of six points, as No. 3 Florida downed No. 17 Denver in a battle of Big East frontrunners Saturday in Gainesville. The Gators (8-1, 2-0 Big East) used a 9-1 run spanning 21 minutes to break a 2-2 tie. Their 15 goals were the most allowed this season by the Pioneers (7-2, 1-1), who came in allowing just 7.75 per game, ranking seventh in Division I.

Resurgent Wahoos Wallop Duke

Virginia scored 11 seconds into the game, built a 9-1 first-half lead and cruised to an 18-5 win over Duke at Klockner Stadium in Saturday, giving the No. 20 Cavaliers (6-4, 2-2 ACC) their fourth straight win after starting the season 2-4. Goalie Rachel Vander Kolk made a career-high 12 saves and Kelly Reese scored a game-high four goals.

“We were able to set the tone and build our momentum early,” Virginia coach Julie Myers said. “We knew Duke came in a little bit banged up from last weekend. We thought if we could start strong we could see if we can get them back on their heels and we did just that.”

Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20 Scoreboard

No. 1 Maryland 16, No. 19 James Madison 11
No. 2 North Carolina 15, No. 18 Boston College 13
No. 3 Florida 15, No. 17 Denver 8
No. 4 Colorado 19, Fresno State 6
No. 5 Princeton 18, Dartmouth 8
No. 6 Penn State 16, Johns Hopkins 10
No. 8 Cornell 15, Yale 6
No. 11 Penn 7, Brown 2
No. 12 Towson 10, Oregon 7
No. 20 Virginia 18, Duke 5

Bowdoin Stuns Top-Ranked Middlebury

Annie Glenn scored on a free position in overtime to lift No. 12 Bowdoin to an 11-10 win over No. 1 Middlebury in Division III action Saturday at Ryan Field. The Polar Bears (6-1, 3-1 NESCAC) scored four straight goals in the second half to take a 10-9 lead. The Panthers (5-1, 3-1) tied it on Hollis Perticone’s free-position goal with 2.2 seconds remaining.  Bowdoin’s win was just its second over Middlebury since 1987 and the first for the Polar Bears over a top-ranked team since they beat top-ranked TCNJ in the 2011 NCAA semifinals.

Division III Scoreboard
No. 12 Bowdoin 11, No. 1 Middlebury 10 (OT)
No. 9 Trinity 14, No. 19 Tufts 11
No. 13 York 10, No. 18 Mary Washington 6

Seton Hill Holds Off Lock Haven

Seton Hill stormed to a 9-2 halftime lead and then held on for a 12-11 victory over No. 14 Lock Haven, giving the Griffins their second upset of a ranked foe in four days. They defeated No. 11 Mercyhurst 10-9 on Tuesday. Keagan Pontious scored a game-high four goals Saturday to lead Seton Hill (4-4, 2-2 PSAC) to its first-ever win over the Eagles (4-2, 1-1).

Division II Scoreboard

No. 11 Mercyhurst 14, No. 7 West Chester 13
Seton Hill 12, No. 14 Lock Haven 11