Down-to-the-wire finishes are nothing new for the men’s lacrosse team. Virginia dispatched ACC foe North Carolina 11-10 Saturday in another nail-biter, this time in Giants Stadium during the inaugural Big City Classic.
“I was struck yesterday walking in here just feeling like ‘Boy, we are fortunate to be playing through to the final weekend of the season,’” Virginia coach Dom Starsia said. “An experience like this has got to help us. I think it’s a treat for lacrosse fans everywhere and for our guys to come and play in this venue in front of a crowd like this.”
At times, Virginia’s play against the Tar Heels seemed somewhat inconsistent. The Cavaliers (12-0, 2-0 ACC) jumped out to an early two goal lead off scores by senior attackmen Danny Glading and Garrett Billings, but North Carolina (8-4, 0-3 ACC) came back to take a 7-3 lead in the second quarter.
“I never thought we lost our poise,” Starsia said. “That’s probably the defining characteristic of this team. I felt like throughout the game we were in the fight. I wasn’t sure how it was going to come out but I thought we had a shot at this thing.”
Some necessary adjustments on both sides of the ball were made during the game, restricting the Tar Heel’s success. The biggest issue defensively was that North Carolina sophomore attackman Billy Bitter accounted for five goals overall, four in the first half alone. Virginia defensemen senior Matt Kelly and junior Ken Clausen switched assignments, allowing Kelly to mark Bitter. The senior defenseman’s physical play limited Bitter to just one goal in the second half.
Offensively, the Cavaliers could not exploit the Tar Heel defense like they had against other teams this season. Freshman attack Steele Stanwick has found much success this season going up against teams’ defenses, but North Carolina held him in check, forcing Virginia to find other scoring outlets. The change did not pose a problem for the Cavaliers, however, as Glading netted three goals on the day while junior midfielder Brian Carroll and Billings each found the net twice.
It was not until the end of the second quarter, however, that Virginia’s comeback effort started to truly take shape. Sophomore midfielder Shamel Bratton’s speed and dodging ability left Tar Heel defenders stumped as to how to guard him, and he managed to score three quick goals in the last five minutes of the half to send the Cavaliers into the locker room down only 7-6.
“I was a little anxious in the first quarter,” Bratton said. “We just wanted to get the ball in the back of the net so badly that we weren’t taking our time. We needed a little bit of a spark and I felt like I was in the position to do it.”
Two huge blows to North Carolina’s defense came in the form of injuries. The Tar Heels lost starting freshman defender Charlie McComas to a shoulder injury early in the contest, and senior goalkeeper Grant Zimmerman, a four-year starter for the Tar Heels, went down with 10 minutes left in the first half with a knee injury that made many in attendance cringe when it was shown on replay. He was replaced by true freshman goalie James Petracca, who recorded 11 saves on the day.
In the second half, Virginia struggled to stay ahead of North Carolina, as the Heels managed to tie the score several times. The largest Virginia lead in the game was two goals; Billings scored the final Cavalier goal in the fourth quarter to bring the score to 11-9. Carolina got within one shot of sending the game to overtime, but sophomore goalkeeper Adam Ghitelman prevented the Tar Heels from scoring in the final 30 seconds of the game.
Virginia will look to maintain its undefeated record as it heads into its final ACC match this weekend against Duke.
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