McCall scores six in rout of Denver

Someone could have stolen the North Carolina men's lacrosse roster from the Fetzer Field press box on Saturday, and the announcer might not have noticed. After all, he really only needed to know three names for much of the game.

In a brilliant display of offensive firepower, UNC starting attackmen Jed Prossner, Mike McCall and Ryan Blair had a hand in all but two of their team's goals, propelling the No. 5 Tar Heels to an 18-12 victory against No. 17 Denver in the season opener for both squads.

"We played unselfish out there," Prossner said. "We moved (the ball) to the next person, the next open guy. We just really moved it quickly. And if that happens, we're going to be able to score a lot."

Prossner pumped in five goals and wasn't even UNC's most prolific scorer. That honor belonged to McCall, who notched a career-best six goals and tied a career high with eight total points.

Not to be forgotten, Blair recorded a hat trick and three assists en route to six points -- also a career high.

"We have a pretty darn good attack unit," said UNC head coach John Haus. "I mean, we have two kids who have started from day one here that now are seniors ... and Ryan Blair does a fabulous job back there with them."

The trio got started a little more than three minutes in when Prossner took a pass from McCall, hugged the left side of the crease and ducked in front of the goal to deposit the ball past Denver goalie Brian Sanders for the game's first score.

Less than a minute later, McCall took a feed on the right side of the field and buried a one-handed shot for a 2-0 lead. It was the first of five first-half goals for the senior.

"We were able to move the ball around, and my job was just made easy," McCall said. "Everybody was giving me good looks ... and I (was) able to capitalize on my shots."

Still, not everything in the first half -- or the game as a whole -- worked out to Haus' liking.

"Twelve goals -- that's way too many," he said. "I think that we're capable of better ... All the poles, the goalie -- everybody at that end is gonna have to get better."

When Denver cut UNC's lead to 11-7 early in the third quarter, Prossner answered with a goal less than a minute later. The preseason All-American struck again about four minutes after that to make it 13-7 UNC, and Blair added two scores later in the quarter to help boost the margin to a comfortable 16-8 entering the final stanza.

And while the fourth quarter was little more than a formality, it did have at least a hint of drama. With 46 seconds to go, Prossner fed McCall for one final goal, a fitting ending to a game they dominated.

"I know that there's going to be a double-team immediately (when I have the ball)," Prossner said. "(If) they lock me off ... Mike McCall is gonna have eight points like he did today. I'm proud of him."

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.