Balanced Effort Leads No. 4 Men's Lacrosse Over Penn, 16-8

Friday, February 28

Chapel Hill, N.C.

5 PM

North Carolina

4-0

Penn

2-2

Penn

North Carolina

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

February 28, 2025 | Men's Lacrosse

Box Score

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – A balanced attack led the fourth-ranked North Carolina men's lacrosse team (4-0) over No. 14 Penn (2-2), 16-8, Friday night at Dorrance Field.

How It Happened
• After Penn scored the opening goal at 10:58 in the first quarter, Carolina responded with six-straight to end the quarter.
• Two goals courtesy of Ty English, and a goal each from Mason Szewczyk, Dominic Pietramala, Paul Barton and Nick Dupuis rounded out the Tar Heel scoring in the opening 15 minutes.
• Carolina outscored the Quakers 4-2 in the second quarter, with James Matan, Ryan Levy (man-up), Caden Harshbarger and Owen Duffy hitting the back of the net, with the Tar Heels leading 10-3 at the break.
• The Tar Heel defense allowed just one third-quarter goal, as Andrew Preis, Pietramala, Dewey Egan and Levy converted for Carolina.
• In the fourth quarter, Pietramala finished the hat trick for the hosts, and Luke Macaluso capped off the night with his first collegiate goal, as Carolina collected the 16-8 victory.

Tar Heel Performances
• 12 different Tar Heels scored on the night, with Pietramala scoring a team-high three goals.
• James Matan led the Tar Heels with four points, which included one goal and three first-half assists.
• English and Levy hit the back of the net twice each.
• Five Tar Heels posted four-or-more ground balls.
• Brady Wambach led Carolina with 15 faceoff wins, 11 of which came in the opening half.
• Michael Gianforcaro earned his fourth win between the pipes, stopping eight shots.

Inside The Numbers
• Carolina is now 10-5 all-time against Penn, winning in back-to-back years.
• The Tar Heels start 4-0 on the year for the first time since 2021, the 20th 4-0 start in program history.
• Friday's win was the third ranked victory on the year for the Tar Heels.
• With his final goal on the night, Pietramala has now scored 50 in his collegiate career.
• Carolina won the ground ball battle, 43-24. The Tar Heels are 130-26 under head coach Joe Breschi when doing so.

Up Next
• Carolina finishes the weekend off on Sunday, hosting No. 8 Princeton.
• Opening faceoff from Dorrance Field is set for 11 AM, with the matchup airing on ACCNX.
• Sunday's game between the Tar Heels and Tigers is Kids Club Day, with the first 500 kids in attendance receiving free UNC thundersticks.