University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Northwestern
UNC Downs Northwestern, 12-11
February 28, 2015 | Women's Lacrosse
CHAPEL HILL – Sammy Jo Tracy had three goals and an assist and Maggie Bill scored three times in the final 13:27 of the game as second-ranked North Carolina (4-1) beat sixth-ranked Northwestern (3-2), 12-11, in women's lacrosse action on Saturday afternoon. Carolina led 2-0 in the opening four minutes of the game but the margin was never more than one goal for either team the rest of the game.
The contest was originally slated to be played on the grass at Fetzer Field but was moved to the artificial turf at Navy Field due to snow in Chapel Hill earlier this week. Carolina is ranked No. 2 in the IWLCA poll and No. 3 in the media poll. Northwestern is No. 6 and No. 7, respectively, in the same two polls.
“I thought it was a hard-fought game today,” head coach Jenny Levy said afterward. “I thought it was a tight game that could've gone either way and we made some plays down the stretch that made a big difference. We also made some mistakes, but things that are correctable. Maggie Bill really took over in the fourth quarter for us, and I thought the play Marie McCool made on the sideline was great. We got some good looks at the cage that we didn't finish, so credit their goalie for that.”
After Northwestern took its first lead at 9-8 with 14:03 to play in the second half, Bill took over and scored all three of her goals in a span of 9:18 to lift the Tar Heels to the victory. She had back-to-back scores at the 13:27 and 12:45 marks to hand the lead back to UNC and scored the unassisted game-winner with 4:09 to play. McCool caused a crucial turnover near the sideline to help preserve the win.
Margaret Corzel also made a big play down the stretch, causing a turnover behind the UNC goal, grabbing the ground ball and racing all the way up the field to score unassisted for an 11-10 Carolina lead at 9:16. It was Corzel's first goal since the 2011 season, when she scored eight times as a freshman. Corzel finished the day with a goal, an assist (the first of her career), four ground balls and two caused turnovers.
In addition to the big days from Tracy, Bill and Corzel, Carolina also got a goal and an assist from by Aly Messinger and Alex Moore and single goals from Molly Hendrick, Ela Hazar and Kelly Devlin. Northwestern was led by Sheila Nesselbush's three goals and two goals and two assists from Corinne Wessels. Selena Lasota and Kaleigh Craig each scored twice, Shelby Fredericks had a goal and an assist and Jess Carroll scored a single goal.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair. The Tar Heels took a 2-0 lead on goals by Hendrick and Tracy in the first 4:29 of the game. The Wildcats responded with back-to-back goals to tie it by the 21:34 mark of the half. The teams traded goals the rest of the half with the Tar Heels holding a 6-5 edge at the break after a Moore goal with 1:05 left.
In the second half, the teams traded goals until the Wildcats tallied two in a row to take its 9-8 lead with just over 14 minutes to go. Bill began her scoring run at that point.
Caylee Waters started the game in goal for Carolina and played 43:27, making four saves and allowing seven goals to improve to 3-1 this season. Bridget Bianco went the distance in the cage for Northwestern, making 13 saves.
Carolina will return to action on Sunday at home when it hosts Elon at Navy Field at noon. Next Saturday, the Tar Heels will open Atlantic Coast Conference play when they host Virginia at 2:30 p.m. at Fetzer Field in Chapel Hill.
No. 2/3 North Carolina 12, No. 6/7 Northwestern 11
Scoring:
UNC goals – Sammy Jo Tracy 3, Maggie Bill 3, Molly Hendrick 1, Kelly Devlin 1, Aly Messinger 1, Alex Moore 1, Ela Hazar 1, Margaret Corzel 1
UNC assists —Corzel 1, Moore 1, Messinger 1, Tracy 1
NU goals – Sheila Nesselbush 3, Kaleigh Craig 2, Corinne Wessels 2, Selena Lasota 1, Jess Carroll 1, Catie Ingrilli 1, Shelby Fredericks 1
NU assists —Blake McHugh 2, Wessels 2, Fredericks 1
Shots: UNC 29, NU 23
Ground balls: UNC 20, NU 22
Draw controls: UNC 15, NU 10
Turnovers: UNC 8, NU 14
Goalkeepers: UNC –Caylee Waters (W, 3-1, 43:27 minutes, 7 goals allowed, 4 saves), Megan Ward (16:33 minutes, 4 goals, 0 saves); NU – Bridget Bianco (60:00 minutes, 12 goals allowed, 13 saves)
