While only a week remains until the ACC tournament, North Carolina women’s lacrosse coach Jenny Levy does not want her players to get too far ahead of themselves.
The No. 2 Tar Heels (12-2, 4-1 ACC) will travel to Nashville, Tenn. to finish off the regular season with a matchup against Vanderbilt (2-13) on Saturday — a game Levy said should be at the forefront of their minds.
“As coaches, we’re not focused on the ACCs yet and every day in practice we’re challenging the players to work on parts of their games that are going to make us better,” Levy said. “I think that daily grind keeps you in the present moment.”
Vanderbilt heads into the game having struggled defensively all year. The Commodores surrender an average of 14 goals per contest, and have given up 20 or more goals in two games this season.
UNC, on the other hand, allows only eight goals a game while boasting a strong offensive attack, which finds the net about 13 times per contest.
After suffering a disappointing 14-13 loss to ACC foe Maryland
, the Tar Heels bounced back with a 16-4 blowout victory against Jacksonville April 12.
Although senior midfielder Kara Cannizzaro and junior attacker Abbey Friend are UNC’s top two scorers, having combined for 64 goals this season, Levy said the team values production from different scoring options.
“I know Kara’s had a great season and Abbey’s also someone other teams really try to mark out,” Levy said after the Jacksonville win. “For us, it’s really important that everyone on the field is a threat — that everyone plays a role in our victories.”
On paper, UNC played its best lacrosse of the season against Jacksonville, recording its largest margin of victory on the year while the Dolphins’ four goals was the fewest amount the Tar Heels have allowed all season.