University of North Carolina Athletics
Class Acts
March 19, 2014 | Women's Lacrosse
This story originally appeared in the March 18 issue of CAROLINA.
by Turner Walston
Last May, the Carolina women's lacrosse team won the program's first-ever NCAA title with a thrilling triple-overtime victory over Maryland. Two weeks ago, the team visited the White House to celebrate that championship. “It was an amazing experience, and definitely the opportunity of a lifetime,” senior attacker Abbey Friend said. “But it's kind of weird. Last year was an amazing experience, and something that I know I'll never forget, so it's trying to close the chapter on that one and move on and focus on this year.”
As they weren't a part of last year's team, the members of the Tar Heel freshman class did not make the White House trip. But they're doing their part to try to earn a trip of their own. In the fall, the program welcomed the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation. Midway through the 2014 regular season, it's clear that the kids are alright.
Carolina's freshman class has hit the ground running. In Saturday's 18-11 win over Georgetown, they scored the Tar Heels' first six goals and 11 total. That win was the program's 13th win in a row dating back to last season, the longest win streak in program history, and helped keep the 8-0 Tar Heels the country's top-ranked team. “They're really stepping up,” Friend said of the first-year players. “We all have a common goal that we're trying to achieve, and they bought into that really early, so that's why they're so successful.”
Carolina head coach Jenny Levy said she identified players with the mentality that would help her team, specifically the competitive spirit and energy that would transition to the college game. “I was really impressed with them throughout the recruiting process, and watching them dominate, whether they were carrying their high school team or playing together in a showcase,” she said. “We want to capture that energy and capture that focus and allow them to fly as soon as possible, so it doesn't surprise me that they're doing so well.”
Levy credited her captains with masterfully integrating this highly-touted freshman class into a team coming off a national championship. “They're doing so well because our upperclassmen are doing a great job leading,” she said. “They're reassuring them. They're giving them confidence, but they're also gently leading them and guiding them, or with a stiff hand they'll guide them and lead them depending on what the situation is. It's a great combination for us right now.” The Tar Heel veterans have helped channel the energy of the standout freshmen toward the team's goals. “I think sometimes when freshmen come in, they're just given the keys to the Ferrari,” Levy said. “That's not what's happening here. These guys are being led by some really strong upperclassmen.”
The Tar Heels were dealt a blow in the preseason when preseason All-America midfielder Brittney Coppa tore her left ACL in an exhibition match against the U.S. National Team. The injury meant that Carolina would be without one of the nation's best players; Coppa had scored three goals in the national title match and assisted on the game-winner. Had she not been lost for the season, Coppa could have contended for national awards. With Coppa sidelined (literally; she remains a vocal presence), the team has perhaps had to lean on younger players a bit more.
The Tar Heels boast terrific leaders in captains Friend, Margaret Corzel, Sloan Serpe and Taylor George, and are getting great production from freshmen like Hendrick, Sydney Holman (20 goals, 20 assists), Carly Reed (23 goals), Maggie Bill (14 goals), Maggie Auslander (two goals) and Caylee Waters (230 minutes in goal).
“The upperclassmen and all the returners really helped us,” said attacker/midfielder Molly Hendrick, who has tallied 12 goals and four assists through the season's first nine game. “It feels like we've been playing with these girls forever, honestly.”
Holman is a Tar Heel lacrosse legacy: her father John is an assistant with the men's team, mother Laurie is the director of operations for Carolina women's lacrosse, and brothers Matthew and Marcus both played at Carolina. Given her family ties, Holman was likely always going to be a Tar Heel. But she wasn't the only one of the nation's top recruits to choose Chapel Hill. “How can you not love it down here?” she said. “It's amazing, the team atmosphere. We're a family, and I think that's what really attracts people. The weather, the coaches and the academics as well . . . It's an amazing school and I love it here.”
With a difficult schedule still ahead of them (trips to Boston College, Northwestern and Syracuse over the next three weeks, along with home matches including Duke and Maryland), these Tar Heels are taking this season one game at a time. Still, there's a trip that the freshman would like to make next spring. “We're kind of sick of watching them go to the White House and we have to sit at home,” Holman said of her classmates. “So I think we're really pushing to get our team there.”
