With perspiration dripping from her forehead and her lacrosse stick hanging from her left hand, UNC senior midfielder Christine McPike described her play as "fine."
McPike finished Sunday's 17-3 win against Davidson one goal shy of UNC's single-game record. She netted five goals, two of which were separated by less than a minute.
And McPike didn't even play the whole game. UNC women's lacrosse coach Jenny Slingluff Levy played her reserves for most of the blowout's second half.
"I guess I played fine," McPike said. "No, I didn't get the record, but that's fine. It's not about getting records. I just wanted our whole team to play."
She offered no further praise for her success on the field. She even deflected credit for her ability to score.
After the game, Slingluff Levy had no regrets about sitting McPike during the landslide victory. She said that McPike would get more chances to display her skills and go after the record when the Tar Heels play tougher opponents.
"If she happened to get those six goals while she was in the game, sure, but I don't think I would have made a conscious effort to keep her in this type of game," Slingluff Levy said.
And while McPike spoke modestly about her play, others were more adamant about the team captain's offensive output.
"Christine is a horse," Slingluff Levy said. "She's a really steady midfielder who gets it done on both ends for us. Her performance is key to the performance."
Even though the Tar Heels could have won without McPike, she provided the firepower to North Carolina's offense, especially in the first half.
For her first goal of the game and the team's second, McPike intercepted a Davidson pass at midfield and took it hard to the net.
A sprinting McPike outran the Wildcat defense before slinging one past goalkeeper Tess Leppert.
"Christine's speed is unprecedented," Singluff Levy said. "As a coach you get to watch her every day, but in the games you really get to see her turn on her afterburners. She keeps herself fit so she's capable of maintaining that high level of speed throughout the entire game. And you can't teach speed, you know."
But you can teach team cohesion.
UNC senior attacker Lindsay Stone, who finished the game with two assists and three goals, assisted on one of McPike's second-half goals.
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Stone found McPike streaking toward the left side of the net before hitting her in stride.
Then, in usual fashion, McPike fired the ball into the back of the net.
"Just from playing together for the last couple years since we're in the same class, I know her style of play," Stone said. "She's fast and she goes straight to the goal. So if I can set her up to beat one or two people, I know she'll do it."
The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu.
