Top-seeded UNC women's lacrosse cruises past Virginia Tech, 19-9, in ACC quarterfinals

No. 1 seeded UNC women’s lacrosse (16-0, 9-0 ACC) defeated No. 8 seeded Virginia Tech (9-9; 3-6 ACC), 19-9, Thursday afternoon at American Legion Memorial Stadium in Charlotte to move on to the ACC Championship semifinals. 

North Carolina controlled the first draw and came out aggressively with a shot attempt by redshirt first-year attacker Chloe Humphrey. 

The first goal came from redshirt sophomore attacker Marissa White, who got the ball from junior attacker Caroline Godine and netted the goal with a behind-the-back shot. 

“I like how fast we started today,” head coach Jenny Levy said. “I always think that’s an important part of the game.”

Shortly after, graduate attacker Ashley Humphrey snuck another in from the back right of the goal. A quick pass from Godine to Humphrey gave the Tar Heels another goal, this time from the left side.

Another turnover by the Hokies, caused by White, gave UNC a wide-open field. White sprinted down the field and passed the ball to senior attacker Olivia Vergano, who snuck the ball under the leg of Jones. The 4-0 run by North Carolina caused Virginia Tech to call a timeout with 9:47 left in the first period. 

After regrouping, the Hokies scored back-to-back goals by Lauren Render and Sophia Trahan to bring the game within two. 

A save by redshirt-first-year goalie Betty Nelson gave the Tar Heels some needed momentum. This allowed junior midfielder Darcy Felter to connect with Vergano, who slammed in UNC’s fifth goal of the day.

The offense rebounded a missed free position shot, allowing Godine to come from around the back, perform a spin move and find the back of the net to close out the first quarter with North Carolina leading 6-2. 

Not even two minutes into the second quarter, the Tar Heels added to their lead with first-year midfielder Eliza Osburn running from the arc to score up the middle. 

After great defensive stops by both teams, UNC was finally able to create something on offense. First-year attacker Addison Pattillo performed several spin moves around her defenders and passed the ball to White while in traffic to extend the lead 8-2. 

A foul on Emma Rowland gave UNC a free position shot, which Godine took. In the center of the circle, Godine launched the ball into the goal. 

About a minute later, Ashley Humphrey passed the ball from behind the net to redshirt-sophomore midfielder Kaleigh Harden, who put the Tar Heels into double digits. 

Not too long after her assist, Ashley Humphrey netted her third of the day, with her sister Chloe Humphrey setting up the score. 

With 10 seconds remaining, Render was able to score to put the score 11-3 at halftime. 

Coming out of the locker room, North Carolina put first-year goalie Lexi Zenk in after Nelson saved two and gave up three goals in the first half. 

“We played  a lot of people today,” Levy said. “We’re trying to get people up and running so they feel the taste of what the tournament feels like.”

The Hokies were quick to strike, with Kamryn Henson and Rowland knocking in back-to-back goals. 

After a quiet first half and two goals taken away after review, Chloe Humphrey finally scored with two quick consecutive goals to put the score 13-5. 

Not even a minute later, Osburn scored her second of the day off a free-position shot. But the Hokies responded with Render’s third goal of the day to keep the score within eight. 

After a bit of a lull, head coach Jenny Levy called a timeout with a little under five minutes remaining in the third quarter. Out of the huddle, the offense was back on track. 

Ashley Humphrey passed the ball from the left side to Pattillo, who netted in UNC’s 15th goal. A minute later, Harden forced a turnover, giving Ashley Humphrey the space to send the ball over to her sister, Chloe Humphrey, for an easy goal. 

North Carolina closed out the third quarter with graduate attacker Reilly Casey assisting Ashley Humphrey’s goal to give the Tar Heels a 17-6 lead entering the final quarter. 

Virginia Tech started the fourth with a back-to-back goals by Grace New, but UNC was quick to respond with Harden connecting with Pattillo to keep the lead to double-digits. 

North Carolina’s defense didn’t allow the Hokies to even make it to midfield before Pattillo checked Render’s stick, picked up the ground ball and slammed in a non-contested goal. 

New was able to score once more off a free-position shot, but North Carolina defeated the Hokies 19-9. 

“It was a nice game just to get into ACCs,” Nelson said. “I think that there’s a lot that we can learn from today, and fortunately, it happened today instead of on championship day.”

The Tar Heels will play the winner of the Clemson versus Duke game in the semifinals on Friday at 5 p.m. 

@dthsports | sports@dailytarheel.com