Site: Chapel Hill, N.C. (Kenan Stadium)
Score: North Carolina 27, High Point 12
Records: North Carolina (5-0), High Point (1-2)
Next HPU Event: Wednesday, March 3rd, — at #3 Virginia (Charlottesville, V.A.)
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The High Point University men’s lacrosse team was defeated by No. 1 North Carolina, 27-12, on Saturday (Feb. 27) afternoon in Chapel Hill, N.C.
“All credit to UNC – they outplayed us in every facet today,” Coach Jon Torpey said after the game. “We have a lot of work to do in a short amount of time, but I love the guys I coach and I know they will respond. They always have and they always will.”
High Point opened the game with an offensive jolt as senior Sean Coughlin scored back-to-back goals to give the Panthers an early 2-0 lead at the 13:17 mark of the 1st quarter. Coughlin scored the first goal unassisted and scored his second on an assist from Asher Nolting. UNC tied the game up at two goals apiece at the 11:08 mark before graduate midfielder Kevin Rogers picked up a loose ball in front of the net and fired in a low bullet to beat the goalie and give the Panthers a 3-2 lead. The Tar Heels equalized at three before Rogers stepped up again for the Purple and White. Rogers scored on an absolute screamer from a healthy distance away from the goal at the 4:31 mark to give the Panthers a 4-3 lead. The Tar Heels responded with a goal to tie the contest at 4, but the Panthers scored again, this time by graduate midfielder Dalton Sulver. The Tar Heels scored one more time in the quarter to even the contest at five goals each heading into the second quarter.
In the second quarter, UNC took an early 6-5 lead, before sophomore Tyler Hendrycks scored on a great pass from Nolting. Nolting hit Hendrycks in the front of the goal and he scored with an over-the-top left-handed dart to tie the score at six. However, this is when the momentum began to shift in favor of UNC. The Tar Heels scored eight straight unanswered goals in the second quarter to suddenly turn an even battle into a 14-6 Tar Heel lead. The Panthers refused to be put away and responded with their own 3-0 run to end the 2nd quarter which includes two goals by Panther freshman Brayden Mayea and one goal by junior midfielder Hunter Vines to bring the score to 14-9 at the break.
The Tar Heels started out strong in the second half both offensively and defensively as they scored eight goals and held the Panthers to one goal in the third quarter. High Point scored two late goals in the fourth quarter but was unable to overcome the offensive firepower of the #2 ranked Tar Heels and fell by a final score of 27-12. Rogers led the Panthers with four points on the day (3G, 1A) while Noting chipped in with three points (3A) extending his points streak to 41 games.
UP NEXT: High Point continues its travels on the road as the Panthers travel to face #3 Virginia in Charlottesville, V.A. on Wednesday, March 3rd. The game starts at 3:00 pm and will be broadcast on the ACC Network.