University of North Carolina Athletics
Levy Excited By 2007 Season, Future Of Program
June 11, 2007 | Women's Lacrosse
June 11, 2007
CHAPEL HILL - The women's lacrosse season did not end with a Final Four berth for the University of North Carolina this spring, but the 2007 campaign nevertheless was one of the most successful in school history.
The Tar Heels went 16-5 overall in 2007, falling one win shy of the school record for victories, set by the 2002 squad (17-3). Carolina went 3-2 in Atlantic Coast Conference play and reached the championship game of the ACC Tournament before losing to Virginia.
UNC reached the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season before Virginia ended its season in Charlottesville, Va. Carolina has earned nine NCAA Tournament bids under head coach Jenny Levy, reaching the quarterfinals eight times and the Final Four three times.
"We were really pleased with our 2007 season," Levy says. "We didn't accomplish our ultimate goal of a national championship, but we're very excited about the progression and future of our program. We had some tremendous leadership from our senior class and we will certainly miss everything that group gave us on and off the field. That being said, I'm confident the future is bright for Carolina women's lacrosse."
Senior defender Jenn Cook earned first-team All-America honors for the third season in a row in 2007, earning the honors from the IWLCA, Inside Lacrosse and womenslacrosse.com. Sophomore defender Amber Falcone was named second-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse and a third-team choice by the IWLCA. Both Cook and Falcone, along with senior goalkeeper Kristen Hordy, were among 17 nominees for the Tewaaraton Award, the top individual award in the sport.
Senior attacker Christina Juras was a third-team All-America choice by the IWLCA. Juras and Cook both were named to the All-ACC team for the third straight year, becoming just the second and third Tar Heel players in history to earn all-conference honors three times. Hordy and Falcone joined Cook and Juras on the All-ACC squad.
Six Tar Heels earned All-South Region honors from the IWLCA - first-team choices Cook and Falcone and second-team selections Hordy, Juras, Erica LaGrow and Kristen Taylor.
Carolina started the season with eight consecutive victories, including a season-opening, sudden victory win over Northwestern. It proved to be the only loss of the season for the Wildcats, who eventually won their third NCAA championship in a row. UNC also beat the other national finalist when it downed Virginia 16-7 during the regular season in Chapel Hill. Combined with its ACC Tournament victory over Duke, Carolina defeated three of the four participants in the 2007 NCAA Final Four.
The Tar Heel defense and a balanced offense were two other points of pride for Levy and her staff in 2007.
"Our defense was dominant throughout the season," Levy says. "Jenn Cook and Amber Falcone anchored things in the back for us and it's encouraging that Amber will be back to do that again next year."
The defensive unit finished the season ranked third nationally in scoring defense with 7.2 goals allowed per game. Carolina ranked third in the country in scoring margin as well, posting a +5.62 goals per game differential. Five different Tar Heel players tallied 30 or more points on the season, led by Juras' 57 and Kristen Taylor's 50. In 2006, Melissa McCarthy and Stephanie Scurachio led UNC with 42 points apiece.
"It's exciting to see that we had two freshmen among our top four in scoring, especially since we had such a senior-dominated team this season," says Levy. "Our underclassmen are the future of this program, and it was very exciting that so many young players made crucial contributions on the field this year. Between Amber Falcone, Kristen Taylor, Megan Bosica, Kelly Taylor, Kristen Taylor, Chelsea Parks, Kristen Carr, Logan Ripley, Jenn Russell and the rest of our young players, the future is very bright for Carolina women's lacrosse.
"At the same time, I'm confident that our junior class will serve us well next year, stepping up to be the leaders for our 2008 team. The character of kids like Katie Brooks, Meg Freshwater, Jamie Hanssen, Erica LaGrow and others will make them strong mentors for our young players. I'm already very excited and anxious for next season to begin."
Nine UNC players have been selected to try out for the 2007-08 U.S. Women's Elite and Developmental teams, US Lacrosse announced in early June. The Tar Heels who will try out are Carr, Cook, Falcone, Freshwater, Hanssen, Juras, LaGrow, Kelly Taylor and Kristen Taylor. All but Cook and Juras, who were seniors this spring for the Tar Heels, will return to the Carolina squad next season.
