Facing a tough test on the road Thursday night in Charlottesville, the top-ranked UNC men’s lacrosse team sprinted out to an early lead and held on for a 16-13 victory over No. 8 Virginia.

Nicky Solomon had three goals and three assists for the Tar Heels (7-0, 1-0 ACC), while Chris Gray continued to shine with four goals and one assist. UNC also received two goals and two assists apiece from Tanner Cook and William Perry.

Solomon and Gray each scored within the first three minutes of action to give UNC a 2-0 lead. From there, the Tar Heels kept their foot on the gas pedal–building a commanding 11-4 advantage by halftime.

Virginia (5-2) came out of the locker room to score the first three goals of the second half, and used a run of four straight goals in the fourth quarter to make the score 15-13.

That was as close as the Cavaliers would get to completing the comeback, however, as the Tar Heel defense held strong and Justin Anderson added an insurance goal with just 10 seconds remaining.

This represents the first win UNC has had over Virginia since 2017.

Up Next:

The Tar Heels will go for win number eight on Saturday at noon, when they host Air Force at Dorrance Field.

 

 

Photo via UNC Athletics

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