The past year has been a benchmark one for North Carolina athletics. Six teams made it to the Final Four in their respective sports, and a seventh could potentially do the same by the end of 2016.
With that in mind, let's look back at the year that was for UNC sports.
The men's basketball team kicked things off in style, going the first month of the year without losing a conference game. The Tar Heels clinched the ACC regular-season title with a win at Duke on March 5, won the ACC Tournament thanks to some inspired performances by tournament MVP Joel Berry and rode senior stars Brice Johnson and Marcus Paige all the way to the NCAA Tournament final.
Coach Roy Williams and company came up just short of a title, but the team's postseason run brought the people of Chapel Hill to their feet time and time again.
Both lacrosse teams also had historic seasons in 2016. After dropping back-to-back games to Florida and Maryland in February, UNC women's lacrosse rattled off 17 straight victories — the last a revenge win over the Terrapins in the NCAA championship game on May 29.
The men's lacrosse team got off to a shakier start, starting the season at 3-3. The Tar Heels barely sneaked into the NCAA Tournament with a comeback 17-15 win over Notre Dame in the last game of the regular season. But when they got there, they surprised everyone.
UNC made it to the Final Four, and from there Chris Cloutier's record-breaking performance gave the Tar Heels their first national title in 25 years — one day after the women won their own championship.
That success carried into the fall season, as three more teams made Final Four runs.
After an up-and-down season, the North Carolina field hockey team battled its way to the NCAA championship game on Nov. 20. The Tar Heels fought back from a two-goal deficit against Delaware, but they gave up a goal with six minutes left that proved to be the deciding margin. It was the second year in a row UNC fell in the national final.
