University of North Carolina Athletics
Lacrosse Team Returns To Action Saturday Against Paladins
February 12, 2016 | Men's Lacrosse
Carolina Returns To Action Saturday Versus Furman
2016 UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA MEN'S LACROSSE GAME NOTES
Game 2: North Carolina Tar Heels (1-0 overall, Ranked #6 USILA Division I Men's Lacrosse Coaches Poll, Ranked #8 Cascade/Maverik Media Poll) vs. Furman Paladins (0-1)
Saturday, February 13, 2016
1 p.m. EST
Fetzer Field
Chapel Hill, N.C.
KEY LINKS FOR SATURDAY'S GAME
Live Stats: GoHeels.com
Purchase Tickets: GoHeels.com Ticket Center
LEARN ABOUT THE 2016 TAR HEELS
2016 UNC Lacrosse Media Guide: Media Guide
Watch Carolina Lacrosse Highlights: UNCTarHeelsAthletics On YouTube
2016 UNC Lacrosse Statistics: Combined Statistics
UNC Lacrosse Player & Coach Biographies: Meet The 2016 Tar Heels Online
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS
Follow UNC Men's Lacrosse On Facebook: Facebook Page
Follow The Tar Heels On Twitter: @UNCMensLacrosse
Follow The Tar Heels On Instagram: Follow The Heels
CAROLINA SET TO PLAY HOST TO PALADINS SATURDAY: The University of North Carolina men's lacrosse team, under the direction of eighth-year head coach Joe Breschi, returns to action this Saturday when its plays host to the Furman Paladins at Fetzer Field at 1 p.m.
Furman head coach Richie Meade, UNC Class of 1976, returns to Chapel Hill where he attended school and also served as an assistant lacrosse coach in the 1980s under then head coach Willie Scroggs.
Fans can purchase tickets to the game at the GoHeels.com Ticket Center. All tickets are $5 and seating is general admission. There will be no live broadcast of Saturday's game but fans can follow live stats on GoHeels.com. North Carolina opened the season last Saturday with a 20-10 win over Michigan. The Paladins also faced a Big 10 opponent, falling to Ohio State 8-7 in Greenville as the Buckeyes notched the winning goal with four seconds to play.
CAROLINA OPENS WITH BIG WIN OVER MICHIGAN: The 2016 version of the University of North Carolina men's lacrosse team opened its season in impressive style lastSaturday afternoon, blasting Michigan 20-10 before a crowd of 2,006 fans at Fetzer Field on a sunny and chilly afternoon.
UNC's restyled starting attack got five points each from senior Steve Pontrello, junior Luke Goldstock and sophomore Chris Cloutier as the Tar Heels led 10-6 at halftime and then broke the game open by scoring the first seven goals of the second half.
Cloutier, stepping in at attack with the Tar Heels' minus record scorers Joey Sankey and Jimmy Bitter lost to graduation, had a tremendous first career start with five goals on seven shots. Pontrello had four goals and an assist, topping his career bests for both goals and points in a game. Luke Goldstock, picked up where he left off from last year, when he scored 50 goals, as he had two goals and three assists.
This early season game ended up being a shooter's day for both teams as the Tar Heels scored 20 goals on 43 shots and Michigan tallied 10 times on 25 shots. UNC led in ground balls 44-24 with eight Tar Heels claiming three or more led by senior Jake Matthai's five.
Carolina had a 20-14 edge in the face-off circle with junior Stephen Kelly winning 12 of 21 and freshman Charles Kelly going 7 for 12. The other thing that stood out on the stat sheet was Carolina's man-down defensive unit which limited Michigan to one goal on six attempts. For the Tar Heels, William McBride had two goals and an assist and freshman Timmy Kelly notched his first two career goals. Patrick Kelly had a goal and an assist for the Tar Heels. William McBride's two goals in the game were a career high for the sophomore midfielder.
Luke Goldstock scored a goal and recorded a point for the 18th straight game against the Wolverines. Goldstock has the ninth longest goal-scoring streak in UNC history and the 20th longest point scoring streak.
TAR HEELS SWEEP ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARDS: No. 6 North Carolina swept the season's first set of weekly honors, as senior attackman Steve Pontrello is the Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Week, and teammate senior short-stick defensive midfielder Jake Matthai is the ACC Men's Lacrosse Defensive Player of the Week. The awards were announced on Monday, February 8, 2016.
A three-year starter in the midfield, Pontrello opened his senior year with his first-ever starting assignment on attack and excelled with four goals and one assist for five points in the Tar Heels' 20-10 victory over Michigan. Pontrello scored four times on six shots. His four goals were a career high (previous was three) and his five points were also a career high (previous was four).
Matthai led the Tar Heels defensively in the season-opening victory over the Wolverines. He helped limit the Michigan midfield corps to just three goals in the game, led Carolina in a 13-for-14 clearing effort, and had a team high five ground balls as the Tar Heels dominated the ground ball game 44-24. He also scored his first goal of the season in the fourth quarter to finish off a strong offensive effort by Carolina.
UNC DEPTH CHART: Based on the opening game of the season, Carolina's 2016 depth chart breaks down as follows.
Starting Attack-Luke Goldstock, Jr.; Steve Pontrello, Sr,; Chris Cloutier, So.
First Midfield-Timmy Kelly, So.; Patrick Kelly, Sr.; Michael Tagliaferri, RS Jr.
Second Midfield - Shane Simpson, Jr.; William McBride, So.; Peyton Klawinski, Jr.
Close Defense–Austin Pifani, Jr.; Jack Rowlett, Fr.; Zach Powers, Sr.
Goalkeeper-Brian Balkam, RS So.
Short Stick Defensive Midfielders–Brett Bedard, Jr.; Jake Matthai, Sr.; Timmy Gehlbach, So.; Tate Jozokos, Jr.
Long Stick Defensive Midfielder–Mark Rizzo, RS Jr.; Jack Lambert, RS So.; Evan Connell, Sr.
Face-Offs–Stephen Kelly, Jr.; Charles Kelly, Fr.
Reserve Attack-Jordan Prysko, RS Fr.
RETURNING ALL-AMERICAS: The Tar Heels have three All-America players returning from the 2015 team. Close defenseman Austin Pifani was named second-team USILA All-America last year while short-stick defensive midfielder Tate Jozokos was a third-team selection. Attackman Luke Goldstock, who scored a school record 50 goals last season, was an honorable mention choice last year.
PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA, ALL-ACC: Tate Jozokos, Austin Pifani and Luke Goldstock were all named to the preseason All-ACC Team chosen by the conference's five head coaches.
Face-Off Yearbook named Jozokos and Pifani as preseason first-team All-Americas going into 2016 while junior midfielder Peyton Klawinski was a third-team choice and Goldstock earned honorable mention status.
CAROLINA VS. FURMAN: Saturday's game marks the third all-time meeting between UNC and Furman. The Tar Heels and the Paladins played in the first ever game in Furman men's lacrosse history on February 9, 2014 with the Tar Heels winning 19-3 in Greenville, S.C. The two teams opened the 2015 season as well with Carolina winning 19-4 at Fetzer Field on February 7, 2015.
A LOOK AT THE TAR HELS IN THE PRESEASON: The University of North Carolina men's lacrosse program enters the 2016 season with many question marks after the Tar Heels suffered massive graduation losses off its 2015 squad which finished 13-4 and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals.
But the youth, or inexperience to use a better word, of the 2016 Tar Heels is hardly a reason to think the Tar Heels won't be a successful team this year. UNC is ranked #6 in the preseason poll of the U.S. Intercollegiate Coaches Association and #8 in the preseason poll conducted by the media for the Cascade/Maverik ranking coordinated by Inside Lacrosse Magazine.
A year ago, UNC finished 13-4 overall and 3-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, good for a second place finish. UNC earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the ninth successive year and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals for the fourth time in head coach Joe Breschi's seven years as head coach. UNC won 13 games, equaling the fourth highest total in a single season in Carolina history. It marked the seventh straight season the Tar Heels won 10 or more games in a season, making head coach Joe Breschi the first Tar Heel head coach in history to post double digit win totals in each of his first seven seasons.
The Tar Heels have lost five All-America players from the 2015 season - midfielder Chad Tutton (first team), long-stick defensive midfielder Ryan Kilpatrick (first team), attackman Joey Sankey (second team), attackman Jimmy Bitter (second team) and defenseman Jake Bailey (third Team).
Players like Bitter, Sankey and Tutton helped write new swaths of the Tar Heel lacrosse record book. Sankey finished as the Tar Heels' career leading scorer and Bitter finished third in points. On the all-time goal scoring chart, Bitter finished second, Sankey third and Tutton ninth. Bailey and Kilpatrick were mainstays on the Tar Heel defensive unit all four years. The Tar Heels also lost several other key players from 2015 but there is reason to think the team will again be amongst the nation's top contenders this coming season.
Coach Joe Breschi will make sure the Tar Heels are challenged in 2016 with one of the nation's best schedules.
“I think our schedule is fantastic as always,” says Breschi. “Obviously, we are dealing with experience issues coming into this year. I once heard a veteran coach say that with less experienced players you can't really teach it, they have to go through it, and I think that's true. We'll have a lot of new faces in different places and we'll have to gain that experience by playing the game.
“We'll start off with a vastly improved Michigan team which has gotten much better. Furman is also a good team and both of those squads have not lost anything from last year. We are starting off with three home games. I think for an inexperienced team it will be a good thing to play at home early in the season. Then we get into the meat of the schedule with traditional power Johns Hopkins and games against defending NCAA champion Denver and last year's NCAA finalist Maryland in the month of March. And then we head into April where we will face an ACC schedule against a quartet of teams all ranked in the Top 8 of the preseason polls.”
Offensively, the Tar Heels will be led by preseason All-Americas Luke Goldstock and Peyton Klawinski. Goldstock scored a school record 50 goals last year and had 67 points overall. Klawinski was the team's most improved player last year when he scored 19 goals, tallying on 43 percent of his shots. Seniors Steve Pontrello (attack), Patrick Kelly (midfield), Michael Tagliaferri (midfield) and Shane Simpson (midfield) are all expected to be key cogs in the Tar Heel offense.
UNC will also return one of the nation's top face-off men in junior Stephen Kelly. The Baltimore native won 214 of 425 face-offs in 2015 and led the Tar Heels in ground balls with 102.
Senior Jake Matthai and junior Tate Jozokos lead an experienced short-stick defensive midfield unit. Matthai is one of the team's four captains and Jozokos was a third-team All-America last year and is a first-team preseason All-America this season.
Another preseason All-America is close defenseman Austin Pifani, a second-team post-season choice in 2015. He will be joined on the defensive end by seniors Zach Powers and Evan Connell, two extremely experienced players in the Tar Heel lineup.
Redshirt sophomore Brian Balkam is the likely starter in goal for the Tar Heels after he started seven games in 2015. Freshmen Eddie Gilman and Colin Reder will back up Balkam.
“I love the way the fall went with this team,” says Breschi. “This group has been fantastic. Their engery, enthusiasm and willingness to hold each other accountable has been nothing short of tremendous. When you lose five of your eight All-Americas including players like Sankey, Bitter and Tutton, you are starting a new era. But we have a collective group of guys committed to each other and the beauty of it is that they've been talking amongst themselves about everyone contributing. That's exciting.”
UNC HEAD COACH JOE BRESCHI: Joe Breschi, UNC Class of 1990, leads the Tar Heels in his eighth season at Carolina. Breschi is 83-34 in his eight years at Carolina, a winning percentage of 71 percent. He also coached 11 years at Ohio State and is 175-97 overall in 19 seasons as a head coach. His overall winning percentage at Ohio State and UNC is 65 percent. On April 3, 2015, UNC head coach Joe Breschi won his 80th game at Carolina. His 80th win came in Carolina's 10-6 triumph at Virginia.
ANOTHER DOUBLE DIGIT WIN SEASON UNDER COACH BRESCHI: Despite playing against the nation's fourth toughest schedule in 2015 (source LaxPower), the Tar Heels reached a double digit win total for the seventh successive year under the tutelage of head coach Joe Breschi, who was hired in June 2008. Breschi is the first head coach in UNC history to post double digit win totals in each of his first seven years mentoring the Tar Heels. Other than Breschi, Dave Klarmann (1991-94) is the only other coach to win 10 or more games in each of his first four seasons. Under Breschi's leadership, UNC went 12-6 in 2009, 13-3 in 2010, 10-6 in 2011, 11-6 in 2012, 13-4 in 2013, 10-5 in 2014 and 13-4 in 2015. The 2009-15 streak marks the first time UNC has won 10 or more games in a season in seven straight years. UNC won 10 or more in six straight seasons from 1989-94.
UNC VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS UNDER COACH BRESCHI: North Carolina has played nationally-ranked opponents 74 times in Joe Breschi's seven-year coaching tenure. UNC is 43-31 in those games, a winning percentage of 58.9 percent. Conversely, the Tar Heels are 40-3 against unranked opponents in his seven seasons (92.9 percent). Breschi is 83-34 overall at Carolina in his seven seasons as head coach. During Breschi's tenure, UNC's only losses to unranked teams came at Ohio State in 2011, at home to Lehigh in 2012 and at Pennsylvania in 2012.
CAROLINA'S STELLAR MARK IN NON-CONFERENCE GAMES: UNC's record in non-conference games continues to be one of the best in the nation over the past nine seasons. The Tar Heels have won 88 of their past 104 games against non-conference teams dating back to April 15, 2006. In Joe Breschi's eight seasons as head coach, the Tar Heels are 67-12 against non-conference teams. The only losses were to Notre Dame in 2009, to Ohio State and Johns Hopkins in 2011, to Lehigh, Pennsylvania and Denver in 2012, to Massachusetts, Notre Dame and Denver in 2013, to Denver in 2014 and to Maryland twice in 2015.
NEAR DOMINANCE AT HOME UNDER BRESCHI: UNC is 54-8 in home games in Coach Joe Breschi's eight years at the helm of the Tar Heels. That's a winning percentage of 86.9 percent. UNC's only home losses during Breschi's four-year tenure include regular-season and ACC Tournament games to Duke in 2009, a regular-season loss to Duke in 2011, an NCAA Tournament loss to Maryland in 2011, regular-season losses to Lehigh and Virginia and an NCAA Tournament loss to Denver in 2012, a regular-season loss to Duke in 2013 and a regular-season loss to Notre Dame in 2014.
CAROLINA IN HOME GAMES: North Carolina has an all-time record of 279-120-2 in home games. That included a 6-1 home record in 2014 and a 11-0 record in 2015. UNC has a 70 winning percentage all-time in history in home games.
THE ALL-TIME RECORD: North Carolina has an all-time record of 469-282-2 in the sport of men's lacrosse. That is a winning percentage of .625.
