After an undefeated season that resulted in a national championship, the North Carolina women’s lacrosse team will look to keep its place atop the national rankings in 2023.
Following the departures of offensive stars Jamie Ortega and Ally Mastroianni and defensive anchors Emma Trenchard and Taylor Moreno, head coach Jenny Levy will look to utilize pieces to take on larger roles in the team's challenging 15-game season. Players such as junior attacker Caitlyn Wurzburger, sophomore defender Brooklyn Walker-Welch and senior midfielder Olivia Dirks are all expected to be key contributors to the team's title defense.
With the season soon set to begin, the Tar Heels will partake in a number of marquee matchups.
North Carolina will face Elon at home on Feb. 4 for an exhibition match. The team will then play three games at Dorrance Field over the span of one week against James Madison on Feb. 11, Liberty on Feb. 15 and Florida on Feb. 18.
The Gators finished fifth in NCAA RPI rankings last year after falling to Maryland in the Elite Eight and are well-equipped to make another impressive run. On top of returning top scorers in attackers Danielle Pavinelli and Emma LoPinto, Florida picked up former UNC captain and attacker Taylor Warehime, whose veteran experience could provide the missing piece in the Gators’ young, talented arsenal.
North Carolina will travel to Blacksburg to face Virginia Tech on Feb. 24 before returning home to play rival Boston College on March 4. Although the Eagles won’t return all-time NCAA scoring record holder Charlotte North, their elite offense spearheaded by graduate attacker Jenn Medjid still makes them a formidable opponent. Considering the national pedigree of both sides, UNC and Boston College should once again be top contenders for the ACC crown in late April.
The Tar Heels will play Virginia on March 11 at home before trekking to Kentucky for a matchup with Louisville on March 16. UNC’s first true road test will be at Northwestern on March 19.
Last year, the Wildcats held a commanding 14-7 lead over North Carolina in the Final Four with 10:15 to play. Then, UNC attacker Sam Geiersbach erupted for five goals as part of an 8-0 run to pull off an improbable comeback.
In that matchup, Northwestern was without 2021 Tewaaraton finalist Izzy Scane, who missed the entire 2022 season with a torn ACL. This year, she’ll be back to bolster the offense, who won’t return two of its top three scorers in Lauren Gilbert and Jill Girardi.
