No. 16 Duke raced out to an early lead and never looked back in a 16-12 win against UNC Saturday at Dorrance Field in the regular season finale for both sides.
The Tar Heels found themselves down 2-0 inside of two minutes played, then trailing 4-0 before finally finding the back of the net late in the first quarter. An Anthony Raio goal in the second cut the Duke lead to 5-3, but the Blue Devils would blow the game open before halftime with six unanswered goals, the last coming with just three seconds on the second quarter clock. The 11-3 score was Carolina’s largest halftime deficit of the season.
UNC found more offense in the second half but never seriously threatened Duke’s lead, only cutting the deficit back to four goals with 1:25 left in the game. The Blue Devils held a decisive 47-37 edge in total shots, outshooting the Tar Heels 27-15 the first half and 41-22 through three quarters. Fifteen of Carolina’s 37 total shots came in the final period.
Saturday’s loss is UNC’s second in its last three games and drops the Tar Heels to 11-3 overall and 2-2 in ACC play. Carolina will compete as the No. 2 seed in next week’s ACC Tournament in Charlotte and will face No. 3 Syracuse in the semifinals Friday at 8 p.m. The Tar Heels defeated the Orange 14-9 in Chapel Hill earlier in April.
Featured image via UNC Men’s Lacrosse on Twitter
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