University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Penn
No. 8 Penn Drops No. 3 Tar Heels, 10-7
March 5, 2011 | Women's Lacrosse
March 5, 2011
PHILADELPHIA, PA. - Emily Leitner made nine saves for No. 8 Penn as the Quakers defeated No. 3 North Carolina, 10-7, at Franklin Field in Phildelphia on Saturday.
Corey Donohoe had a four-point game with three goals and an assist for UNC. Abbey Friend added two goals on two shots and Kara Cannizzaro and Kaitlyn Messinger each scored once.
Three players had two goals for Penn in the win - all three underclassmen. Caroline Bunting continued her hot start with two more scores, giving her five goals in two games. Classmate Meredith Cain added a pair of goals - both coming in the first half - while freshman Tory Bensen had two goals for her first career strikes.
Carolina forced Penn to play from behind early, taking two leads in the first half and then rallying from a 4-2 deficit to take a 5-4 lead with 25:55 left to play. The Quakers, undaunted, scored the next four goals to reclaim an 8-5 lead with 10:42 to play. Erin Brennan started the run with a goal at 19:03 before Bunting rattled off back-to-back free position goals. Her first came with 18:02 to play and she scored again with 17:13 left in the game. After six-plus scoreless minutes, Giulia Giordano added more insurance with 10:42 to play.
Just over a minute later, Donohoe scored her third goal of the game to close the Tar Heels back within two, but Bensen then took over.
She scored her first collegiate goal with 7:12 left on the clock, answering after her first shot went wide. Then, just 1:09 later, she took a Giordano feed and found the back of the cage for the second time, extending Penn's lead to 10-6. Cannizzaro added a free position goal for UNC with four minutes left, but Penn took care of the ball in the waning moments and secured the win.
The win is Penn's third in four years over UNC. The Quakers are now 2-0 overall in 2011, while UNC falls to 3-2.
The stats were even overall, with shots 21-20 in favor of the Tar Heels and turnovers showing 10 for UNC and 12 for Penn. The Quakers had the edge on draws, 11-8, a big factor in protecting the lead as Penn had a 7-4 edge in the second half.
Overall, UNC was 4-for-5 on free position shots.
The Tar Heels will return to action on Monday at Denver.
