No. 9 Tar Heels Travel To No. 15 Johns Hopkins For First Ranked Matchup

Saturday, February 22

Baltimore, Md.

1 p.m. ET

North Carolina

Johns Hopkins

Zac Tucci

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

No. 9 Tar Heels Travel To No. 15 Johns Hopkins For First Ranked Matchup

February 21, 2020 | Men's Lacrosse

Game Notes Live Results Watch (ESPN3)

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The North Carolina men's lacrosse team is gearing up for its first ranked matchup of 2020 against No. 15 Johns Hopkins on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. ET at Homewood Field in Baltimore, Md. The Tar Heels' game against the Blue Jays also marks their first road game of the season.

No. 9 North Carolina is 3-0 after besting Lafayette, 24-8 for the program's 300th home win on February 15. In addition to the historic victory, the Tar Heels had the sixth-most points (43) and tied the second-most assists (19) in a single game in program history against the Leopards. Carolina's 24 goals and 43 points are the most in a single game since the Tar Heels scored 26 against Manhattan on March 7, 2015. The last time the Tar Heels won by a margin of 16 goals or more was March 14, 2016 when they defeated Manhattan, 18-2, on the road.

The No. 15 Johns Hopkins Blue Jays dropped to 1-1 following a 7-10 loss against then-No. 16 Loyola. The Blue Jays opened 2020 with a 15-7 win at Homewood Field against then-No. 19 Towson.

The Tar Heels are four games behind in the series with Johns Hopkins leading 26-22. Though Hopkins outlasted Carolina at Kenan Stadium to win 11-10 in 2019, the Tar Heels have won the last five meetings at Hopkins' Homewood Field.

Following three home victories, the game will be the first of three successive road games for the Tar Heels. North Carolina visits Johns Hopkins on Saturday, Denver on March 1 and Furman on March 6.

HOW TO FOLLOW
The North Carolina men's lacrosse game against Johns Hopkins will be aired on ESPN3.

Links to live results and live streams of North Carolina men's lacrosse games are available at GoHeels.com.

Fans can also follow @UNCMensLacrosse on Twitter and Instagram for updates throughout the meet. UNC Men's Lacrosse is also on Facebook. A recap of games and results will be posted on GoHeels.com following the conclusion of each competition.

Live Results | Watch (ESPN3) | 2020 Schedule | 2020 Roster

LAST TIME OUT
The North Carolina men's lacrosse team secured the program's 300th home victory on Saturday afternoon with a 24-8 win over the Lafayette Leopards at Dorrance Field.

In their historic performance, the Tar Heels combined for the sixth-most points in a single game in school history with 43 (24g, 19a) and tied the second-most assists with 19. Carolina's 24 goals and 43 points against the Leopards are the most in a single game since the Tar Heels had 26 goals and 44 points against Manhattan on March 7, 2015.

With eight multi-point players and 16 different point-scorers throughout the game, 15 Tar Heels were able to set 26 new career records across the various individual statistics. Four of those student-athletes matched career highs in other categories while eight other individuals also matched at least one personal best.

Carolina's 3-0 start in 2020 marks the 12th time in the last 15 seasons that the Tar Heels have opened with three-straight victories. Lafayette's head coach Pat Myers, a former assistant coach at Carolina, and his team drop to 0-3 on the season after facing No. 1 Penn State, No. 16 Georgetown and now No. 9 North Carolina.

With three home victories under their belts, the Tar Heels will hit the road for three consecutive weekends to face their first ranked opponents of the season. Carolina will face off against No. 10 Johns Hopkins on February 22 and No. 8 Denver on March 1 before heading to Furman on March 6.

Though UNC has dropped its last two home matchups against Johns Hopkins, the Tar Heels have been relatively successful against the Blue Jays on the road. Carolina has won its last five games at Hopkins' Homewood Field dating back to a 13-8 win in 2008.

Key Moments
» In the first quarter, Carolina took 17 shots to Lafayette's nine and picked up nearly three times the ground balls to take a 6-2 lead. A dynamic offense – and even two long poles – allowed eight different Tar Heels to contribute to the opening quarter total.
» Alex Trippi and Tanner Cook each had two goals in the second quarter, but Lafayette held the period's goal differential to just one with six point-scorers.
» The Tar Heels took off in the third period, outscoring Lafayette 9-1 to all but clinch their historic victory. Nicky Solomon picked up four points on his way to yet another career-high performance (2g, 5a) while Chris Gray and Justin Anderson each scored twice.
» Cook picked up his fourth goal – a single-game season best – on an assist from Solomon while three other Tar Heels – Bailey Laidman, Quintin O'Connell and Jacob Kelly – each scored their first goals of the season.

Notable Team Achievements
» Carolina's 24-8 victory secured the program's 300th home win.
» The Tar Heels totaled 24 goals – four man-up – and 19 assists for 43 points on 58 shots. The team also combined for 51 ground balls and six Heels forced 10 turnovers in their third match of the season.
» Carolina's 24 goals and 43 points are the most in a single game since the Tar Heels scored 26 against Manhattan on March 7, 2015. The Tar Heels' 43 points against Lafayette are also the sixth most in program history.
» Carolina's 19 assists tie the second-most assists in a single game in program history. The last time Carolina had 19 assists was against VMI on March 31, 1993.
» The last time the Tar Heels won by a margin of 16 goals or more was March 14, 2016 when they defeated Manhattan, 18-2, on the road.