No Shellenberger, No Problem: No. 3 Virginia Thumps No. 9 North Carolina 19-12

With Connor Shellenberger out with an injury, the Cavaliers dominated the Tar Heels behind a seven-point performance from Payton Cormier

UNC Athletics

No Shellenberger, no problem.

On a rainy evening in Chapel Hill, No. 3 Virginia bounced back from last week's loss to Duke with a dominant 19-12 victory at No. 9 North Carolina despite Connor Shellenberger missing the game with a lower extremity injury. In the absence of their best player, Payton Cormier led the Cavaliers with five goals and two assists, while Xander Dickson netted three goals and an assist. Freshman Truitt Sunderland replaced Shellenberger on attack and finished with one goal and one assist.

UVA's offensive success sans Shellenberger was even more impressive against North Carolina's No. 3-ranked scoring defense in the country, which averages only 8.5 goals allowed per game.

Virginia took control of the game early on with a 5-0 run, but UNC battled back to get within four goals at 8-4. Then, in the second quarter, an eight-goal run that bled into the second half secured the victory. Additionally, Virginia had a healthy 42-28 advantage in ground balls, a key factor to the Cavaliers' success. 

North Carolina scored the first goal of the game on a man-up opportunity after a penalty from Evan Zinn. But the Hoos responded with a six-goal run beginning with Xander Dickson, before Payton Cormier fired home three-straight goals to put the Hoos up 4-1.

Of those goals, a few came from transition. Furthermore, the Cavaliers finished 14/15 on clears in the first half, easily maneuvering past the North Carolina ride. From a settled offense perspective, Dickson occupied the primary dodging role with Shellenberger out. 

The Virginia scoring continued with a transition goal from Evan Zinn to redeem himself after being penalized twice early on. Although Petey LaSalla started 3/8 at the x early on, the Cavaliers opened up the game with a ground ball advantage of 10-2, a key reason why they were able to pull away early. Peter Garno also scored to extend the Virginia lead to 6-1. The defense stood stout, only allowing two shots on goal through the first quarter.

On the first possession of the second quarter, Harry Wellford stopped the bleeding for North Carolina. Minutes later, Thomas McConvey intercepted a pass off of a North Carolina clearing attempt, leading to a goal from Cormier. On the ensuing possession, Ricky Miezan lasered a goal after a cross-field assist from Jeff Connor. 

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— Virginia Men's Lacrosse (@UVAMensLax) April 7, 2023

North Carolina then netted back-to-back goals as Virginia struggled to clear the ball. In response, McConvey and Dickson both scored to make it 10-4, sparking an eight-goal run that leaked into the second half and essentially sealed the victory for the Cavaliers. On defense, Matthew Nunes made two massive saves before Cole Kastner scored a full-field open net goal, exposing the Tar Heels' ten-man ride. In the first half, Nunes picked up eight saves and posted a .667 save percentage.

Later on, during UVA's second man-up opportunity of the game, Cormier found the back of the net for his 5th goal of the game to give Virginia a 12-4 lead at halftime. The key in the first half for the Cavaliers was Grayson Sallade, who registered four ground balls and two caused turnovers in addition to a chased-down shot that awarded possession to Virginia.

On the opening faceoff of the second half, LaSalla won the draw and pinned the corner with a lefty shot which inspired four consecutive goals for the Hoos. LaSalla started the second half 4/5 from the x, allowing Virginia to roll out to a 16-4 lead. After struggling in the first half, LaSalla finished 17/33 from the x in addition to two second-half goals.

Midway through the third quarter, North Carolina stopped the bleeding with two goals, the second goal from faceoff specialist Andrew Tyeryar. LaSalla answered with his second goal of the night to make it 17-6. Minutes later, North Carolina exploited Virginia’s ten-man ride with an empty net goal. Shortly after, Logan McGovern netted a goal to cap a 4-1 run for the Tar Heels.

The Cavaliers took their foot off the gas and put it in cruise control in the fourth quarter, which allowed the Tar Heels to outscore the Cavaliers 4-2 for the remainder of the game. But UVA's lead was never in doubt as Virginia secured a comfortable and emphatic 19-12 victory.

Payton Cormier led the way with five goals, and Xander Dickson had three. Additionally, Griffin Schutz, a game-time decision, finished with one goal and three assists. Thomas McConvey added two goals and two assists. Matthew Nunes finished with 12 saves versus 11 goals allowed in a solid performance in between the pipes for the sophomore goalie. 

Virginia (8-2, 2-1 ACC) will be right back in North Carolina next Saturday at noon for a rematch with No. 1 Duke in Durham. 

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