No. 7 UNC men's lacrosse outlasts No. 12 Duke, 8-7, on the road

No. 7 UNC men’s lacrosse (9-2, 2-0 ACC) defeated No. 12 Duke (9-4, 0-2 ACC), 8-7, Saturday afternoon at Koskinen Stadium.

The Blue Devils took the first draw, but graduate goalkeeper Michael Gianforcaro saved the quick offensive shot by midfielder Max Sloat. Gianforcaro completed 12 saves on the day. 

With the Tar Heels now on offense, sophomore attackman Owen Duffy came from around the back of the net and smashed the ball into the mesh to give UNC the lead.

North Carolina kept the offense rolling but goalkeeper Patrick Jameison was protecting the net well, blocking and saving attempts by senior midfielder Ryan Levy and junior attackman James Matan.

With seven minutes remaining in the first quarter, the Blue Devils netted one in with attackman Liam Kershis assisting midfielder Benn Johnston for his 21st goal of the season. 

Two minutes later, Sloat shot another one from midfield, putting Duke up 2-1. 

Defense and saves by both goalkeepers kept the score 2-1 at the end of the first. 

The Tar Heels scored first in the second quarter, with junior attackman Matt Wrede rebounding Duffy’s missed shot to tie the game at two. 

Two minutes later, first-year midfielder Mason Szewczyk passed the ball to redshirt sophomore attackman Dominic Pietramala who went around the circle and netted in his 35th goal of the season and UNC’s third of the day. 

After a period of turnovers and misses by both teams, Duke had back-to-back scores by Sloat and attackman Graham Blake to put the Blue Devils back up 4-3. 

Coming out of a North Carolina timeout, Johnston continued Duke’s scoring streak and closed out the second quarter up by two over UNC. 

Out of the locker room, it only took the Tar Heels thirty seconds to cut the lead down to one, with first-year midfielder Caden Harshbarger passing the ball to senior midfielder Ty English who slammed the ball into the net from right field. 

A few minutes later, Szewczyk came from around the circle to net in another from right field. 

Not even a minute later, first-year faceoff Parker Hoffman took a pass from sophomore faceoff Brady Wambach who won the faceoff and sprinted down field to now give UNC a one point lead. 

But it wasn’t long until the Blue Devils tied it at six after Kershis found the back of the net. 

With a shot clock violation against Duke, UNC was back on offense. Duffy dropped the ball to Pietramala who scooped it up and scored to give North Carolina the 7-6 lead going into the final quarter. 

The Tar Heels took advantage of having a man-up as Wrede passed the ball from behind the net to Szewczyk, who was planted to the left of the goal and extended the lead to two. 

Duke responded with a goal by midfielder Aiden Blake, his first of the season, to keep the game close. 

But several great saves by Gianforcaro kept the Blue Devils from making a comeback as the Tar Heels defeated Duke, 8-7. 

The Tar Heels will be back at Dorrance Field on Saturday, April 19 at noon for senior day against Notre Dame. 

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