The story of this Division 1 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Tournament is that the game isn’t over until the final whistle sounds. That was exactly the case today in the NCAA D1 Women’s Lacrosse Championship game between North Carolina and Boston College.
The first quarter started off with an intense defensive effort by both teams, causing the shot clock to expire on both ends of the field – still UNC’s #36 Sam Geiersbach pinched the first two goals of the game, setting a high bar. Looking to answer, Charlotte North, Tewarraton Nominee and NCAA recorder holder for total career goals, split her double team and scored with 6:11 left in the first to put Boston College on the board for the first time.
North found the net again with just two seconds remaining on the shot clock in the next possession to tie the game 2-2. However North Carolina came roaring back, scoring three unanswered goals in two and a half minutes (Aldave, Mastroianni, Dirks) to enter the second quarter 5-2.
Boston College came out looking to answer in the second quarter. Goalie Rachel Hall got her first save of the game at 14:05 and the possession resulted in a goal by Cassidy Weeks to kick off the second quarter 5-3 in UNC’s favor. The rest of the quarter was back and forth. North Carolina utilized transitions and woman-up opportunities, while Boston College utilized skilled dodging and patience on their offensive movements. With 0:19 seconds left, Cassidy Weeks ripped a shot just inside the 8 meter and snuck it between the legs of Moreno to bring to score 7-5 going into half.
Boston College came out strong in the third. Jenn Medjid scored for BC to bring the score to 6-7. Charlotte North then capitalized off of the 8 meter after being checked in the head to tie it all up. After a fantastic save by Hall, Boston College took the lead for the first time with a roll dodge shot from Charlotte North with 2:13 left in the third, with North Carolina going 14:29 without a goal before Ally Mastroianni scored after an incredible ground ball snag with 0:48 seconds left to tie up the game 8-8 going into the last quarter.
Not enough good things can be said about the defensive performance during this game. Every shot had to be earned, and with the multiple shot clock expirations, those turnovers had a massive impact by the fourth quarter. Both goalies had incredible games, with Boston College goalie Rachel Hall having a chance to reset at halftime after struggling to find her footing in the first half, and Taylor Moreno was making consistent saves throughout the game.
Kayla Martello scored first in the fourth quarter to bring back the lead but Jamie Ortega answered going 1v1 with the goalie to tie it up after a turnover. This was followed up with another quick goal from Nicole Humphrey less than a minute later to reestablish the North Carolina lead. Belle Smith caught the rebound from a shot to bring it back to 10-10.
UNC came out of their timeout with a little under six minutes left ready to win. Sam Geiersbach scored her 37th goal of the season to put UNC back in the lead. After an incredible save by Taylor Moreno, Scottie Rose Growney sniped a corner shot to put the Tar Heels up by 2. But the game isn’t over until the final whistle blows, and Boston College was not going down easy. With 15 seconds left, Cassie Weeks finds the ground ball and finishes in the back of the net to make it a one goal game. There just wasn’t enough time for Boston College and North Carolina Women’s Lacrosse program walks away as National Champions for the third time in school history.
