University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels In Must Win Mode At Fairfield
April 26, 2002 | Men's Lacrosse
April 26, 2002
FAIRFIELD, CONN. - The University of North Carolina men's lacrosse team will face the Fairfield University Stags Saturday needing a win to keep its NCAA Tournament hopes for 2002 alive.
Game time Saturday at 1p.m. at Alumni Field on the Fairfield campus.
The 19th-ranked Stags are one of two teams already in the 2002 NCAA Tournament field. The Stags clinched the automatic berth given to the champion of the Great Western Lacrosse League last Sunday by beating Notre Dame. Fairfield is 7-4 overall.
UNC must earn one of the six at-large bids available for this year's tournament. Carolina is 7-4 overall and ranked 12th in this week's poll. The Heels must turn things around quickly however as Carolina has lost four of its last five games after starting the season 6-0. But ending with a two-game winning streak would impress the NCAA committee. Carolina also plays next Wednesday night at ninth-ranked Hofstra.
Two teams have already qualified for the NCAA Tournament. Fairfield earned the GWLL bid as the league champion and Massachusetts has qualified as champion of the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC).
Four other bids will go to the champions of the America East Conference, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, the Ivy League and the Patriot League.
The other six bids will be awarded to at-large teams.
