Carolina Hammers Duke in ACC Semifinal
from press release
CARY, N.C. — The third-seeded North
Carolina Tar Heels knocked off the second-seeded Duke Blue Devils,
17-8, in the semifinals of the ACC Women’s Lacrosse
Championship Friday night at WakeMed Soccer Park. The Tar Heels
will face No. 1 Maryland in the championship game on Sunday.
Behind two quick goals from junior Emma Hamm, Duke jumped out to a
2-0 lead in the first two and a half minutes of the game. Unfazed,
UNC responded with an 8-1 run and held a 10-6 advantage at the
intermission. Junior Laura Zimmerman scored three first-half goals
to pace the Tar Heels while Emily Garrity, Becky Lynch and Corey
Donohoe added two goals apiece before halftime.
“We didn’t hang our heads down 2-0,” Donohoe
said. “We just said, ‘Let’s focus and don’t
let up.’”
The Tar Heels picked up where they left off in the second half,
outscoring the Blue Devils, 7-2, after the break. Zimmerman and
Lynch led all players with four goals and six points apiece, and
Donohoe finished with three goals and one assist. Thanks to a pair
of assists on Friday night, Lynch set the Carolina single-season
record with 28. She also controlled six draws. Kara Cannizzaro
tallied a game-high four assists in the contest. Goaltender Lauren
Makysm had seven saves on the night.
“Tonight we won the draws, which was the biggest difference
in the game,” said UNC coach Jenny Levy. “Our offense
has been good the last two games. It’s just been a matter of
communication and patience. We are starting to see the results of
some of hard work.”
“I think we are disappointed in our performance tonight, but
it’s also a testament to the great game that Carolina
played,” Duke coach Kerstin Kimel said. “They played an
awesome game from start to finish. Unfortunately, this was not a
great night for us to have the kind of game we had.”
The championship game between UNC (12-4) and defending ACC and
national champion Maryland (16-0) will be televised by Fox Sports
live at 1:00 p.m. Sunday. It is the second consecutive year the Tar
Heels and Terrapins will battle for the conference championship.
The Blue Devils, who fell to 13-3 with the loss, will return to
action on April 29 at Penn.
