Women's Lacrosse Game of the Week: No. 2 North Carolina vs No. 4 Syracuse

The lacrosse season is young, but a top-five matchup is already looming upon us. Two ACC powerhouses clash on Saturday when No. 2 North Carolina hosts No. 4 Syracuse.

The Tar Heels lead the all-time series 12-7, but the Orange won the lone 2024 matchup 20-5.

Two of North Carolina’s three wins have been against ranked opponents. The Tar Heels opened up the season 14-2 win over then-No. 18 James Madison. They most recently defeated then-No.5 Florida 14-9 last Saturday.

North Carolina’s scoring is led by sisters Ashley and Chloe Humphrey. Each has a team-high 15 points on the season. Chloe, a redshirt freshman, also leads the team with 13 goals. Ashley, a graduate student, is second with six goals in the early season while posting a team-high nine assists.

In the net for the Tar Heels, Betty Nelson has done most of the grunt work to start the season. Nelson has 16 saves through the first three games and her 4.40 goals-against average is second in the nation.

As a team, North Carolina is averaging 17 goals per game and 27.33 points per game, which both fall in the top 10 nationally.

Defensively, the Tar Heels have allowed just four goals per game through the first three contests and have outscored their opponents 51-12.

Syracuse made a trip to the NCAA Tournament Semifinals last season but fell 10-7 to eventual national champion Boston College.

The Orange are 3-0 to start the season, among these victories is a 15-9 triumph over No. 9 Maryland.

Offensively, Syracuse is led by a balanced attack from graduate student Emma Ward and senior Olivia Adamson.

Ward posts a team-high 17 points, totaling eight assists and nine goals. Adamson falls right behind with 16 points for 10 goals and six assists.

Junior goalkeeper Daniella Guyette has allowed 25 goals through the first three games while recording 28 saves for a .583 save percentage.

As a team, the Orange are outscoring their opponents 54-28 while notching in 18 goals per game and recording 29.50 points per game. Just like North Carolina, these numbers put Syracuse as a top-10 offensive team in the country.

On the defensive side, the Orange haven’t been as clean as the Tar Heels through their first three competitions. Nonetheless, the Syracuse defense has still put up pretty good numbers, allowing 28 goals on the season, with 9.33 per game.

This early season conference matchup has all the meanings of being a promising one. The game will be at 11 a.m. Saturday and can be streamed on ACC Network.

Gianna Dowling is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email gmd5738@psu.edu.