March 10, 2007
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. — No. 20 Vanderbilt hung tough with the nation’s No. 1 team before being edged, 14-11, by North Carolina on Saturday at the VU Lacrosse Complex.
Four free position goals by the Tar Heels (6-0) were the difference in the contest, which included seven ties and three lead changes.
Commodore junior Margie Curran led all scorers with six points on four goals and two assists. UNC’s Jess Allen scored a hat-trick, including two goals on eight-meter attempts.
The Commodores (3-2) struck first, scoring just six seconds into the game. Sophomore Cara Giordano took the opening draw for Vanderbilt, and Curran controlled the ball for the Commodores. Curran made a long lead pass to senior Jennifer Tapscott, streaking behind the UNC defense, for the first tally of the game.
The Tar Heels would tie the game at the 28:28 mark, starting a back-and-forth first half in which neither team led by more than a single goal.
Five of Curran’s six points came in the first half, including a game-tying goal at the 4:37 mark of the period that knotted the score at 8-8. With only 1:26 left, however, Carolina’s Melissa McCarthy scored the put the Tar Heels ahead at the break, 9-8.
The scoring slowed down in the second half, with both defenses tightening up. The teams combined for 10 saves in the second half, including five by UNC’s Logan Ripley, a halftime substitution.
Tar Heel Erica LaGrow scored the first goal of the second half, giving UNC their first two-goal advantage of the game. Curran would answer to pull VU back within a goal, but back-to-back scores by Carolina’s Chrissy Rude and Christina Juras put the Heels up by three, 12-9.
Both teams would manage two more goals each in the last 18 minutes, with VU freshman twice assisting senior Kendall Thrift on goals. The final goal of the contest came at the 9:40 mark of the second half, as Juras found teammate Kristen Taylor to make the final tally of 14-11.
Vanderbilt was dominant on draw controls, 19-8, including seven from Giordano and four from Curran. Junior Michele Slotke had a team-high four ground balls for the Commodores.
The Commodores travel to No. 4 Duke this week, playing at Koskinen Stadium in Durham, N.C., at 2 p.m. ET, on Wednesday, March 14. Vanderbilt’s next home contest is scheduled for Sunday, March 18, when Hofstra visits the VU Lacrosse Complex.
