The No. 19 North Carolina men’s lacrosse team (7-4, 1-1 ACC) came up short in a nail-biter on Saturday against fourth-ranked Virginia, losing 11-10.
What happened?
After a 10-8 win against Duke last Saturday, UNC traveled north to face Virginia (9-2, 3-0 ACC). The Tar Heels and Cavaliers were locked in a close battle throughout the entirety of the game.
But in an evenly matched competition, one team had to lose; today it was UNC.
Virginia scored first just over two minutes into the game. North Carolina quickly found its footing, scoring two back-to-back goals in the first quarter, taking a 2-1 lead. The Tar Heels kept their advantage through the rest of the first half, going into the third quarter up 5-3, led by first-year attackman Nicky Solomon with three of those first-half goals.
But at the end of the third quarter, the Cavaliers took the lead with their own offensive push which changed the nature of the game. From there on out, UNC and UVA were neck and neck. Both teams played an extremely intense fourth quarter, and the scoring was back and forth.
Three consecutive scores by Virginia in the fourth quarter took the team from down two to a lead. That run was crucial for the momentum of the game and helped the Cavaliers eventually seal the victory.
The Tar Heels and Cavaliers traded goals down to the final minutes, but Virginia held on and edged out UNC 11-10. A late-game goal by Dox Aitken gave the Cavaliers the victory.
