The tradition of the North Carolina-Virginia rivalry is no secret, but one of the tightest competitions between the two schools is often overlooked: women's lacrosse.
The No. 9 Cavaliers will travel to Chapel Hill on Saturday to face the No. 8 Tar Heels in one of the ACC's closest competitions.
Virginia (4-3, 0-1 ACC) has something to prove after falling to Carolina in 1999 and 2000.
"We've only beaten UNC once since I've been here," senior midfielder Mills Hook said. "But we're definitely pumped for UNC. It should be an exciting, huge team effort."
"Our kids are sick of" losing, Virginia coach Julie Myers said. "They're ready to put their foot down."
Both teams are coming off tough losses: Carolina fell to in-state rival No. 4 Duke on March 17 on a last-second shot from the Blue Devils' Laura Gallagher.
Virginia battled No. 6 Princeton on Sunday, but after a trying Spring Break when they played four games in nine days, the Cavaliers crumbled, and lost, 9-6. Virginia hung with the Tigers through most of the first half, but Princeton went on a 5-0 run that proved too much for the Cavaliers to overcome.
"It was a big week," Myers said. "We played some good lacrosse during the week, but that last game was one game too many."
In its other matches over Spring Break, Virginia beat Richmond, 16-10, and Penn State, 15-11, but fell to conference rival Maryland, 8-7.
"Maryland was a huge disappointment," Hook said. "But it was positive in the sense that we know we can beat them now.
Facing a game that can make or break its winning record, Virginia now will try to make use of its high-scoring offense and tough defense that has helped them against ranked opponents Penn State and Syracuse.
Behind the quick sticks of the Cavaliers' Aumiller sisters and midfielder Jamie Haas, the Virginia offense has outscored their opponents this season, 80-70.
Midfielder Lauren Aumiller leads the team in goals scored, with 15 goals and six assists, and her sister Lacey has added 13 goals and three assists. Haas has posted 13 goals.
North Carolina has "big guns" of its own, according to Myers. Midfielder Christine McPike leads the 'Heels with 16 goals and three assists, while attacker Kellie Thompson has 15 goals and six assists.
"McPike has great speed and a heart of gold," Myers said. "And Kellie is one of their most dynamic attackers."
On the other end, Virginia can be confident with sophomore goalkeeper Liz McCarthy, who has 9.77 goals against average and has played the vast majority of games for the Cavaliers.
"I think we're coming together all over the field," Myers said. "Our defense is getting tough and the offense is scoring a lot of goals every game. In practice they're pushing each other."
"They're going to be tough," Hook said. "UNC's always tough."
With a little grit of their own, the Cavaliers hopefully will be able to become the tough kids of the conference as well.
Read More
Five Takeaways from Virginia’s Spring Game
By Peter Kriebel | 16 hours agoVirginia football is shaping up to make significant progress in 2024, led by an array of newcomers and promising underclassmen.
Women’s swimming and diving — the newest NCAA dynasty
By Grace Gould | 19 hours agoIn the end, regardless of which school is heralded as the greatest of all time historically, it is glaringly obvious that Virginia is the greatest women’s swimming school of the modern era.
No. 6 women’s lacrosse gets revenge on No. 14 North Carolina
By Matthew Ryeom | YesterdayThe Cavaliers' big third quarter propelled them to a key victory over the Tar Heels.
