Top-Ranked Tar Heels Visit High Point Wednesday

Wednesday, March 23

High Point, N.C.

4 PM

North Carolina

High Point

Aldave, Geiersbach, Ortega, Wurzburger at BC

Photo by: Zach Webster

March 22, 2022 | Women's Lacrosse

Watch On ESPN+Live Stats Moreno ACC DPOW

• The University of North Carolina women's lacrosse team (9-0, 3-0 ACC), newly-minted as the nation's top-ranked team in the IWLCA/Inside Lacrosse poll, will visit High Point (1-5) on Wednesday March 23 at 4 p.m.
• ESPN+ will stream the game.
• The Tar Heels are coming off a 16-15 win on the road over top-ranked and defending NCAA champion Boston College on Sunday afternoon.
• UNC has won 35 consecutive regular season games, 15 consecutive road games and 36 of its last 37 games overall.

Series vs. the Panthers
• Carolina leads the all-time series with High Point, 9-0, including a 19-5 win in Chapel Hill over the Panthers in 2021.

Tar Heel Tidbits
Team
• Scoring Run: Carolina has scored 10 or more goals in 45 of the last 46 games (a run that began on April 6, 2019). The exception was the 2021 ACC Tournament final vs. Syracuse (9).
• UNC has won 36 of its last 37 games. Carolina won 27 in a row, the longest winning streak in school history and the seventh-longest in NCAA history, prior to the season-ending loss in the 2021 national semifinal to Boston College.
• Carolina has won 44 of its last 46 games overall (a run that began on April 6, 2019). The only two Tar Heel losses during the last 46 games came to Boston College in the 2019 and 2021 NCAA Tournament semifinals.
• The Tar Heels have won 35 consecutive regular season games.
• UNC has won 15 consecutive road games, the longest road winning streak in school history.
• Carolina leads the nation in assists (10.44 per game).
• Carolina is averaging 17.67 goals per game this season, ranking fourth in the nation. The UNC school record is 15.90 in 2017. The 2021 Tar Heels were the third-highest scoring team in program history at 15.64 goals per game.
• Carolina has scored at least 15 goals in every game this season and has scored 20 or more four times.
• The Tar Heels are allowing 8.89 goals per game in 2022, the ACC's second-best and the nation's eighth-best scoring defense. UNC led the nation in scoring defense in 2021, posting the second-best goals per game allowed average (6.58) in school history and the best in 25 years. The school record is 5.52, set in 1997 (UNC's second year as a varsity program).
• Carolina has held its opponents to single-digit goals in 27 of its last 36 games (since the start of the 2020 season).
• In the 2022 preseason, Inside Lacrosse ranked the Carolina defensive and midfield units as best in the nation and its attack group as the nation's second-best (behind Boston College).

Individual Tidbits
• Andie Aldave, a graduate transfer from Notre Dame, leads the ACC and is second in the nation in shooting percentage at a blistering .692.
• Aldave (Notre Dame) scored a career-high six goals against Louisville on March 13 and scored four goals in the win at No. 1-ranked Boston College on March 20.
• Sam Geiersbach has 13 goals and 14 assists in the last five games.
• Scottie Rose Growney is second on the team in shooting percentage at .600 (21 of 35) and is third on the team with 21 goals.
• Growney has scored at least two goals in eight of nine games this season.
• Caitlyn Wurzburger is second on the team with 20 assists and 34 points.
• Junior defender Emily Nalls was one of 13 players nationally added to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List on March 10. She becomes the seventh Tar Heel on the 2022 watch list. Nalls leads UNC with 10 caused turnovers and is second with 25 draw controls.

#1 In The National Polls
• Carolina moved into the No. 1 spot in the ILWomen/IWLCA rankings on March 21 after its win at previously-top-ranked Boston College.
• UNC had been ranked No. 2 nationally in every poll prior to winning at BC.

Ortega Rewriting Record Books
• Attacker Jamie Ortega is rewriting the UNC, ACC and NCAA record books.
• Ortega is Carolina's career points leader, setting the record on February 24 at Pitt. She he also is UNC's career goals leader, having set that record in 2021.
• Despite being a fifth-year senior, Ortega still hasn't played four full seasons since the 2020 campaign was cut short after seven games due to the Covid-19 pandemic and Ortega missed nearly two full contests in 2021 due to injury.
• Ortega broke the UNC career points record in her 72nd career game, 17 games (almost a full season) fewer than it took Hoeg to set the record.
• Ortega has 399 points in 78 career games for a UNC-record 5.12 points per game. Katie Hoeg had 370 points in 89 games (4.16 ppg).
• Ortega is second in ACC history in career points. Jen Adams of Maryland is first with 445. Ortega is fifth in NCAA history in points and needs just one to become only the fifth player in Division I history to compile 400 points.

• Ortega needs:
- 47 points to be ACC's career points leader (she has 399; record is 445 by Jen Adams of Maryland)
- 100 points to be NCAA's career points leader (she has 399; record is 498 by Kylie Ohmiller of Stony Brook)

• Ortega has scored at least one goal in 43 consecutive games.
• Ortega has scored two or more goals in 69 of 78 career games.
• Her 291 career goals are fourth in NCAA history and second in ACC annals. Current BC player Charlotte North is first in ACC history with 311 goals.
• Ortega has scored five or more goals 28 times as a Tar Heel.
• Ortega has tallied at least one point in 72 consecutive games and 77 of 787 in her career.
• Ortega became the third player in Carolina history top compile at least 100 assists with three on March 6 vs. Northwestern. She is third among Tar Heels in career assists with 108.
• 2022 Preseason Honors: Preseason First-Team All-America (USA Lacrosse, Inside Lacrosse), No. 2 overall player in the nation (men's and women's; Inside Lacrosse), Preseason All-ACC, Tewaaraton Award Watch List

Mastroianni Excelling in Midfield
• Graduate student midfielder Ally Mastroianni won the 2021 ACC Midfielder of the Year award but might be having an even better season as a graduate student in 2022. She has been at her best in big games.
• In the March 20 win at top-ranked Boston College, she had two goals (including the game-winner) and five draw controls.
• She tied her career high with four goals and set a new career high with five points in UNC's 20-9 win over No. 6 Northwestern on March 6.
• Mastroianni has 41 draw controls in the last six games.
• She leads Carolina with 58 draw controls this season. She also led UNC with a career-high 112 DCs in 2021, earning unanimous first-team All-America honors.
• She was among three Tar Heels and 52 ACC student-athletes selected as 2021 Weaver-James-Corrigan Postgraduate Scholarship Award recipients. Chris Gray (men's lacrosse), Rachel Jones (women's soccer) and Mastroianni (women's lacrosse) were part of the list of conference honorees announced on March 24.
• Mastroianni, from Martinsville, N.J., earned a degree in 2021 with a double major in media & journalism and communication studies. She is now pursuing a master's degree in media and communication while also spearheading UNC's community service efforts off the field.
• 2022 Preseason Honors: Preseason First-Team All-America (USA Lacrosse, Inside Lacrosse), No. 11 overall player in the nation (men's and women's; Inside Lacrosse), Preseason All-ACC, Tewaaraton Award Watch List

Last Game:
Tar Heels Win Thriller at No. 1 BC, 16-15
• Carolina went on a 6-0 run in the second and third quarters and held off a furious Boston College rally, beating the defending NCAA champion Eagles, 16-15, in a matchup of the nation's top two teams on March 20 at Alumni Stadium.
• Graduate transfer Andie Aldave had four goals on five shots to lead the way for the Tar Heels, who won their 35th consecutive regular season game. Fellow transfer Olivia Dirks also came up big for Carolina, tallying two goals, two assists and a team-high five draw controls.
• Grad transfer attacker Sam Geiersbach finished with two goals and two assists. Jamie Ortega had a goal and two assists. Ally Mastroianni and Elizabeth Hillman both scored twice, with Mastroianni adding five draw controls and scoring a key goal with 11:37 remaining in the fourth quarter, the only UNC goal in BC's 6-1 run to close the game.
• The Tar Heel defense held BC scoreless for a span of 21:05, including the entirety of the second quarter, as UNC seized control of the game.

Tar Heels Streaking at Dorrance
• Carolina has won 27 consecutive home games at Dorrance Field, the longest home winning streak in program history.
• UNC's last loss at home came on March 23, 2019, to Boston College.

ACC Dominance
• Carolina is 59-6 in its last 65 games against Atlantic Coast Conference opponents (regular season and postseason) and has won five consecutive ACC Tournaments.
• UNC's five straight ACC titles are the second-longest streak in the event's history (behind Maryland's six straight from 2009-14).
• UNC's 15 consecutive ACC Tournament wins are the longest streak in the history of the tournament.
• Since a loss in the 2015 ACC Tournament final, UNC's' only losses to conference foes have come to Boston College (four times), Syracuse (once, in 2017) and Notre Dame (once, in 2019).

Moreno Snaps UNC Career Wins Record
• Graduate student goalie Taylor Moreno has a career record of 57-6 in the cage and became Carolina's all-time leader in goalie wins on Feb. 16 against Furman.
• Moreno has started 63 consecutive games in the cage for the Tar Heels, beginning with the final five games of the 2018 season.
• Moreno has three games with 10+ saves this season.
• Moreno has 20 career games with 11 or more saves, including five in 2021 and three in 2022.
• She was named ACC Defensive Player of the Week on Feb. 22 after the wins over Furman and Florida.
• Moreno eclipsed the record of Caylee Waters (2014-17), who had 49 victories. Waters is a volunteer assistant coach for the 2022 Tar Heels.
• 2022 Preseason Honors: Preseason National Goalie of the Year (USA Lacrosse), Preseason ACC Defensive Player of the Year (Inside Lacrosse), Preseason First-Team All-America (USA Lacrosse, Inside Lacrosse), No. 7 overall player in the nation (men's and women's; Inside Lacrosse), Preseason All-ACC, Tewaaraton Award Watch List
• In 2021, Moreno finished second in the nation in goals against average (a career-best 6.65) and save percentage (a career-high .549). Her goals-against average was nearly three goals per game better than her career average entering the 2021 season (9.12).
• She is a two-time ACC Tournament MVP (2018, 2021).
• In the 2021 ACC Tournament, she earned MVP honors for the second time after leading the Tar Heels to three wins. Moreno allowed just 4.78 goals per game in three UNC victories, posting a save percentage of .611.

Tewaaraton Award Watch List Includes Seven Tar Heels
• Six UNC players made the intitial watch list for the 2022 Tewaaraton Award, most of any school in the nation.
• A seventh Tar Heel, Emily Nalls, was added on March 10.
• Tar Heels on the initiail list include Olivia Dirks, Ally Mastroianni, Taylor Moreno, Jamie Ortega, Emma Trenchard and Caitlyn Wurzburger.
• The list includes the top players in NCAA lacrosse and highlight the early contenders for the 2022 Tewaaraton Award, given to the national Player of the Year.
• Moreno and Ortega both were among the five finalists for the 2021 Tewaaraton Award.

Nine Preseason ILWomen All-Americas
• Carolina placed nine players on the 2022 Inside Lacrosse Preseason All-America Team, leading all schools nationally in total players on the list (nine), players on the first-, second- and third-team teams (seven) and first-team honorees (five).
• Tar Heels on the ILWomen preseason first team include players at all four positions on the field: attacker Jamie Ortega, midfielders Olivia Dirks and Ally Mastroianni, defender Emma Trenchard and goalie Taylor Moreno. Ortega, Mastroianni, Trenchard and Moreno all were consensus first-team All-Americas after the 2021 season.
• UNC attackers Andie Aldave and Caitlyn Wurzburger both grabbed spots on the third team, while attacker Scottie Rose Growney and defender Emily Nalls both made honorable mention.
• Carolina's five first-team honorees were the most in the nation, followed by Syracuse's three.

Preseason ACC Poll & All-ACC Team
• The ACC's coaches made their predictions for the 2022 ACC order of finish, and they picked North Carolina to finish second in the conference behind defending NCAA champion Boston College.
• The Eagles received 76 points in the voting to take first place. The Tar Heels, who have won five consecutive ACC championships, garnered 74 points. Syracuse (63) was picked third, and Notre Dame (56) was fourth. All four of the ACC's top four picks are ranked in the top five in the national preseason polls.
• At the same time, the coaches named their 2022 Preseason All-ACC Team, which includes four Tar Heels: attacker Jamie Ortega, midfielder Ally Mastroianni, defender Emma Trenchard and goalie Taylor Moreno. All four were consensus first-team All-Americas last year, and Ortega and Moreno both were among the five finalists for the 2021 Tewaaraton Award, given to the nation's top player.
• Boston College and Syracuse both also placed four players on the 18-player team. Notre Dame had three.

Six Tar Heels On US National Team
• Head coach Jenny Levy and her staff have named the final 18-player roster that will represent the United States in this summer's World Lacrosse Women's World Championship, and six of the players are current or former UNC players who played as Tar Heels for Levy.
• The six Carolina players, most of any school in the nation, include goalie Caylee Waters (UNC '17), fifth-year senior defender Emma Trenchard ('22), graduate student midfielder Ally Mastroianni ('21), midfielder Marie McCool ('18), midfielder Emily Parros ('13) and attacker Molly Hendrick ('17).

Tar Heels in the National Spotlight
• Six UNC games will be televised nationally by ESPNU and the ACC Network in 2022, the networks announced on Monday.
• UNC's six national broadcasts on the networks lead all schools in the nation. No other school has more than four. Tar Heel national broadcasts include:
• February 24 at Pitt, 4 p.m. (ACCN)
• March 6 vs. Northwestern, Noon (ESPNU)
• March 20 at Boston College, 2 p.m. (ESPNU)
• April 9 at Syracuse, 2 p.m.(ESPNU)
• April 14 at Virginia, 8 p.m. (ACCN)
• April 21 vs. Duke, 8 p.m. (ACCN)

• All Carolina home games not listed above will be streamed live by ACC Network Extra, available on smart TVs and via the ESPN app.
• The ACC Network will air the entire 2022 Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, and ESPNU will televise all games of the 2022 NCAA Championship weekend on May 27-29.

Fedor Wins AD Scholar-Athlete Award
• Each school year, Carolina Athletics honors members of each varsity team as Athletic Director's Scholar-Athletes, recognizing one from each UNC team for outstanding academic achievement.
• Amanda Fedor, a senior exercise & sport science major from Vestal, N.Y., was the women's lacrosse winner.

Last Year
• Carolina went 20-1 overall in 2021, including 9-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, won its fifth consecutive ACC championship and made its 12th appearance in the NCAA Women's Lacrosse Tournament final four.
• The Tar Heels made their ninth final four appearance in the last 12 NCAA Tournaments (2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021).