Well-rounded effort, 12 different scorers push UNC men's lacrosse past UPenn

James Matan gives a motivational speech before every game. 

The junior attackman wants to get his teammates dialed in. While he's not a captain, the entire team looks up to him. First-year Mason Szewczyk said many of the guys aspire to be like Matan. 

When trying to recall what he said before Friday’s game against Penn, Matan laughed. 

“I said, ‘We’re going to play really hard,’” Matan said. “‘And we’re going to get the win.’” 

Whatever he said clearly worked. In No. 4 UNC’s 16-8 win over No. 13 UPenn on Friday night at Dorrance Field, the offense ignited. In a game where the team’s second leading scorer — sophomore Owen Duffy — remained relatively quiet, different players stepped up. Twelve different Tar Heels scored, with two notching their first collegiate goals. The bench produced eight goals in what was an all-around effort from the team. 

“Guys are working hard day in and day out, really giving everything they have to this team and this program,” Matan said. “That's all you can ask for.”

Penn's best defender and preseason All-American Brendan Lavelle was tasked with handling Duffy. And Lavelle did for the most part.

The Penn defender held Duffy to one goal and one assist on six shot attempts — an unusual stat for the sophomore who has recorded four goals in two out of the four games this season. 

So, down 1-0 with 10:58 left in the first quarter, UNC needed someone to step up. 

Enter Ty English.

The senior midfielder made North Carolina's first goal off an assist from Matan, planted behind the goal. English received the ball, then made a quick move to score from point-blank. 

From there, UNC's offense didn't slow down. Matan acted as the general, recording a game-high three assists. 

Less than a minute after English scored, Matan found Szewcyzk.

Matan dodged his defender from behind the goal, searching for an open player. He made contact with Szewczyk, who weaved into the defenders and snuck up behind them. 

Szewcyzk scored his first collegiate goal. And Matan helped to ensure the dream-come-true moment materialized. 

“All credit to the rest of the guys,” Szewczyk said. “They got me wide open on that play.”

Plays like these are why Szewczyk calls his teammates unselfish. They do not care who is scoring, as long as it gets done. The team tallied a season high 11 assists in Friday’s game. 

Szewczyk credited offensive coordinator Jon Thompson for establishing the offensive connection. He puts the team through drills where players are outside of their normal positions and have to work through different situations to score. 

“Our chemistry is still building, and so we're kind of figuring out what guy is supposed to be where,” Matan said. “And we’re screwing the ball really well.”

“We can only do so much,” head coach Joe Breschi said. “We can prepare them for what they're going to see, but it's them.” 

Breschi emphasized how much of this connection is player-led. He prefers to stay out of his players' business when it comes to pep talks, like Matan’s pregame speech. Living up to the mental and physical standard of play is something the players teach each other. 

And it's obvious that player-led preparation has taken root in his team. 

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