Although goaltender Jamison MacLachlan put the nation on notice with another outstanding performance, a third-quarter skid cost the Stony Brook men’s lacrosse team a chance at consecutive ranked wins.
The Seawolves (1-1) were ready for the No. 11 University of North Carolina (UNC) Tar Heels’ (2-0) loaded offense on Friday at Chapel Hill, N.C. However, the Tar Heels found enough advantages to remain unbeaten on the season while Stony Brook’s attack struggled immensely in a 9-4 loss.
After controlling the entire first quarter and creating a 2-0 lead, the Seawolves allowed UNC to roar back with four goals in the second period. The third overall recruit from the 2022 class — UNC attackman Dominic Pietramala — did the heavy lifting for his team by scoring a natural hat trick. Still, attackman Ray O’Brien ended the first 30 with his third goal of the season to cut Stony Brook’s deficit to one going into half.
Going into the second half, MacLachlan had already made nine saves on 13 shots faced, but the Tar Heels were ready to test him some more. The first attacking set of the third frame belonged to UNC after a face-off win by FOGO Brady Wambach, who had himself a great day at the office. UNC defensive midfielder Andrew O’Berry attempted a shot on that possession, but MacLachlan stifled him and registered the ensuing ground ball.
The other way, the Seawolves had a man-up opportunity, but a turnover from midfielder Kian McCoy gave the Tar Heels the possession back. After they cleared, UNC midfielder Ty English found a side-arm angle for a shot but MacLachlan was in the right spot for the stop once again.
Five minutes later, Pietramala looked for his fourth goal of the night, but his shot was saved by MacLachlan. Soon after, UNC long stick midfielder Paul Barton looked to beat the netminder on the rush, but MacLachlan ate his shot up for a fourth-straight save to open the third quarter.
To solve the growing nightmare of attempting to bypass Stony Brook’s star goaltender, the Tar Heels turned to USA Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Third Team All-American honoree attackman Owen Duffy. He started his attack from the right side of the goal and quickly accelerated to the X for a wraparound try. Utilizing his speed, Duffy got to the near side with his hand free; as he dropped his stick for a low shot, MacLachlan was already there for his 10th stop of the contest.
However, after the save on Duffy, the dam finally broke and UNC exploded for four goals in quick succession. English scored the first two before Pietramala found his fourth of the night. The run was capped off by FOGO Parker Hoffman.
With the game seemingly out of reach due to the Seawolves’ offensive struggles, the teams split two goals in the fourth quarter. Attackman Carson Boyle scored in a man-up scenario and Pietramala tallied a fifth to answer.
“I am proud of the effort and toughness,” head coach Anthony Gilardi said in a postgame interview with Stony Brook Athletics. “I thought we played really hard and I thought our defense and [MacLachlan] kept us in the game all night long. There were just too many mistakes, especially when you don’t have the ball that much. You have to capitalize when you have it and score on extra-man opportunities.”
MacLachlan — the reigning Coastal Athletic Association Defensive Player of the Week — made 17 saves on 26 shots for a .654 save percentage. After two games against ranked teams, MacLachlan has made 30 saves on 47 shots for a .638 save percentage.
True freshman midfielder Tanner Williams continued his hot start by tallying a goal and two assists for a second three-point game. Boyle and O’Brien rounded out the scoring effort with two goals and one, respectively.
FOGOs Robbie Smith and Chris Esposito struggled to solve the Wambach problem, who won 13 of the contest’s 17 face-offs (76.5%).
The Seawolves will stay in North Carolina for their next matchup against the Queens University of Charlotte Royals on Sunday. The Royals are 0-2 to start the season and are coming off a 13-12 loss to Holy Cross. Opening face-off is scheduled for noon.
