University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Marist
Tar Heels Bounce Back With 12-3 Win Over Marist
March 18, 2008 | Men's Lacrosse
March 18, 2008
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Junior attackman Bart Wagner's career-high six points led the University of North Carolina men's lacrosse team to a 12-3 victory over Marist at Fetzer Field Tuesday night. The win boosted the Tar Heels' record to 6-1 on the season as the No. 4 Tar Heels bounced back from their first loss of the season last Saturday. Marist remains winless on the season at 0-5 but not without putting up a good fight against the Tar Heels.
The game evolved in a strange manner and featured among other things six extra-man goals, three-man down goals, two empty-net goals, three illegal stick penalties, 33 turnovers and 12 penalties combined for a total of 17.5 penalty minutes. The teams also combined to hit the pipe with seven shots.
Wagner not only had a career-high six points, he also tied his career high for goals in a game with four, originally set last year in regular season games against Duke and Virginia.
On the night, UNC outshot the Red Foxes 44-34 and had a pronounced 52-33 edge in ground balls. Grant Zimmerman played the first 47:15 in goal for the Tar Heels and had nine saves while allowing three goals. UNC won 10 of 16 faceoffs and scored four goals on four extra-man chances. Marist had two of its three goals come in extra-man situations.
Corey Zindel of Marist finished with one goal and two assists. Besides Wagner, the Tar Heels did not have a multi-goal scorer in the game. Senior midfielder Fletcher Gregory and freshman defenseman Ryan Flanagan each scored their first career goals for UNC. Other goals came from junior middie Ben Hunt, who also added an assist, attackmen Gavin Petracca, Billy Bitter and Kevin Federico and midfielders Sean Burke and Rob Driscoll.
After not having scored a man-down goal all of last season, the Tar Heels had three Tuesday night. In fact, only six of the 15 goals scored on the night combined between the two teams came in even-man situations. There were six extra-man tallies overall and three man-down scores.
The game started pretty conventionally with Rob Driscoll scoring an unassisted goal 1:20 into the match. Neither team could dent the scoreboard again until 2:43 remained before the end of the period when Ryan Flanagan notched his first career goal on a fast break, sending a bounce shot past Ryan Penner, the starting goalie for the Red Foxes. After a penalty later in the quarter, UNC scored its first extra-man goal at the 1:44 mark as Wagner got his first tally of the game, assisted by Hunt. Then with 22 seconds left in the opening period, the Tar Heels forced a failed clear and Gavin Petracca claimed the ground ball and scored into an empty net.
At the start of the second quarter, Marist quickly pulled back to within 4-2. After UNC midfielder Michael J. Burns was assessed a tripping penalty, Ryan Sharkey scored an extra-man goal off an assist by Zindel. The goal exactly one minute into the quarter made the score 4-1. After the play, a stick check was called and UNC's Tim Kaiser was assessed a three-minute unreleasable penalty for an illegal crosse. Just nine seconds into that ensuing EMO, Marist's Zindel scored to make it 4-2.
Carolina still had 2:51 of the penalty to kill off but after winning back possession, Billy Bitter scored an unassisted goal with the Heels a man down at 11:08. The goal came just eight seconds before the end of the penalty to Kaiser. Sean Burke scored 45 seconds after Bitter on an outside shot to extend the Carolina lead to 7-2.
With eight minutes left in the second quarter Carolina's Michael Jarvis was banished for a minute for slashing. But UNC capitalized again as Fletcher Gregory, senior short-stick defensive middie, scored a man-down goal on a fast break, assisted by Wagner. Gregory's left-handed strike put the Heels up 6-2. The teams traded goals before halftime with Pat VanHall scoring for the Red Foxes at 4:04 and then Kevin Federico finishing off a nifty pass from Wagner to score on the extra-man at 2:25.
The second half began with UNC assessed a second three-minute unreleasable penalty for an illegal crosse, this one against middie Michael J. Burns. But Wagner foiled the Red Foxes' plans by scoring UNC's third man-down goal at 13:20 of the quarter. By contrast, UNC had no man-down goals during the entire 2007 season. Wagner scored again with 3:14 to play in the quarter to increase the lead to 10-3.
The fourth quarter continued the wild ways of the contest as Mike McLachlan of Marist was assessed a three-minute illegal crosse penalty to begin the final period. UNC scored two extra-man goals during the penalty time, an unassisted goal by Ben Hunt at 13:19 and Wagner's fourth goal of the game at 12:45.
Neither team scored again although Marist had its best chance in the last 45 seconds when the Heels were down two men in the penalty box. But reserve goalkeeper Chris Madalon made the second of his two saves to stave off the last scoring chance for Marist.
This Saturday, the Tar Heels will play host to ACC rival Maryland (5-2, ranked No. 9) at 6 p.m. at Fetzer Field in a game that will be nationally televised live on ESPNU.
