CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. – The seventh-ranked Syracuse Orange topped the second-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels 9-8 in double-overtime to claim the 2015 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championship Tournament title at Klockner Stadium on Sunday.
Kayla Treanor scored with 1:44 left in the second overtime period to give the Orange the win with a low-to-high sidearm shot that beat Tar Heels netminder Caylee Waters for the win.
The loss snapped North Carolina’s seven-game winning streak that included a 15-8 win over Syracuse two weeks ago.
Aly Messinger led the Tar Heels with three points (2 goals, 1 assist), while five others – Marie McCool (2 goals), Maggie Bill (1 goal, 1 assist), Carly Reed (1 goal, 1 assist), Kelly Devlin (1 goal) and Lindsay Scott (1 goal) – supported the offensive effort.
Waters started in goal and went the distance for Carolina, making 11 saves, while Kelsey Richardson made 10 stops for Syracuse.
Treanor and Halle Majorana both scored twice for Syracuse and helped to put the Orange ahead 3-0 early.
The Tar Heels fought back and both teams were tied 3-3 by halftime.
The Orange won 16 of 21 draws in the game, an advantage that helped put them ahead 8-5 with 7:16 remaining.
North Carolina put together a 3-0 run and tied it on a free position goal by Scott with 1:10 to go in regulation.
Devlin had a last-second shot, but Richardson came up with an impressive stick save to send the game to overtime.
Taylor Gait had a last-second opportunity to win during the first overtime, but Waters came up with an equally impressive save to send the game to the second extra session.
Working an isolation play from behind the goal, Treanor eventually established space at the top of the crease before using her defender as a screen to snap the winning goal past Waters and under the crossbar to signify the game’s dramatic ending.
Notes: Treanor was selected as the Tournament MVP leading the All-Tournament team that included four of her teammates (Richardson, Majorna, Kempney, and Vehar)…Messinger, Waters, Devlin and Bill earned All-ACC Tournament honors for the Tar Heels…Coupled with the ACC Men’s Lacrosse Championship title secured by the Orange earlier in the day at Chester, Pa., Syracuse became just the third program in ACC history to sweep the women’s lacrosse and men’s championships, joining Virginia (2006) and Maryland (2011)…After entering the match ranked among the nation’s top seven ranked teams, UNC and Syracuse each anticipate high NCAA Tournament seedings when pairings are announced next weekend. The ACC is hopeful of placing as many as seven teams in the NCAA field.
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2015 ACC Women’s Lacrosse All-Tournament Team
Kayla Treanor, Syracuse (MVP)
Kelsey Richardson, Syracuse
Halle Majorna, Syracuse
Kailah Kempney, Syracuse
Mallory Vehar, Syracuse
Caylee Waters, North Carolina
Aly Messinger, North Carolina
Maggie Bill, North Carolina
Kelly Devlin, North Carolina
Kenzie Kent, Boston College
Kerrin Maurer, Duke
Barbara Sullivan, Notre Dame