BALTIMORE, MD – The 19^th-ranked North Carolina men's lacrosse team outscored host Johns Hopkins 5-0 in the fourth quarter to turn a 7-6 deficit into an 11-7 victory Tuesday evening at Homewood Field.  The ninth-ranked Blue Jays had their two-game season-opening winning streak snapped and slip to 2-1 on the year, while the Tar Heels improve to 2-0.
 
After outscoring the Blue Jays 3-1 in the third quarter to slice a 6-3 halftime deficit to 7-6 entering the final period, the Tar Heels got an Antonio DeMarco goal just 66 seconds into the fourth quarter to pull even for the first time since the game was less than a minute old.  The tie held for more than five minutes before an unassisted goal from Luke McGovern gave the 'Heels their first lead at the 8:22 mark and Sean Goldsmith pushed the margin to 9-7 when he scored off a skip pass from McGovern just under two minutes later.
 
The Blue Jays had a golden chance to cut into the deficit less than a minute after Goldsmith's goal as the Tar Heels were called for two 30-second penalties that gave the Blue Jays a two-man advantage.  The 'Heels were able to kill off the penalties and later added unassisted goals from DeMarco and Dewey Egan in the final 4:37 to put the game away.
 
Johns Hopkins had needed just 54 seconds to open the scoring in the first quarter as Russell Melendez scored his fifth goal of the year off a nice feed to the slot from Jacob Angelus and an unassisted goal from attackman Garrett Degnon late in the period gave the Blue Jays a 2-0 lead after one.
 
Goldsmith got UNC on the board just 18 seconds into the second quarter, but the Blue Jays responded with strikes from Dylan Bauer and senior goalie Tim Marcille to push the lead to 4-1.  Bauer scored on quick dodge to the crease, while Marcille's goal came with Carolina in a 10-man ride as he fired into an open goal from 55 yards.

2Q | 8:04
JHU 4 - 1 UNC

What a goal! Marcille gets the first of his career in style!#GoHop pic.twitter.com/p8HLgWlJIh

— JHU Men's Lacrosse (@jhumenslacrosse) February 14, 2023

 
The teams traded four goals in the final 6:44 of the half to account for a 6-3 Blue Jay lead at the half with Hopkins' Brendan Grimes closing the first-half scoring with three seconds remaining before the break.

The Tar Heels had a decided possession advantage in the third quarter and finally cashed in at the 9:25 mark when Henry Wellford bounced one home from the wing.  UNC's P.J. Zinsner then wrapped a pair of goals around a Matt Collison strike for the Blue Jays to make it 7-6 entering the fourth quarter.  DeMarco's quarter-opening goal 66 seconds in then ignited the five-goal, fourth-quarter run for the Tar Heels.
 
Inside the Box Score – Johns Hopkins
• Marcille posted 15 saves to give him three straight games to open the season with 15 or more saves.  He is the first Blue Jay goalie in at least 16 years to have 15 or more saves in three straight games.
• Marcille's goal is believed to be the first for a Johns Hopkins goal since Stuart Jones scored in the third quarter of a 16-10 win over Washington College on March 18, 1986.
• Collison (2g) and Angelus (2a) were the only multi-point scorers for the Blue Jays.
 
Inside the Box Score – North Carolina
• Tillman paced the Tar Heels with three points on goal and two assists.
• Goldsmith, DeMarco and Egan all scored twice for the Tar Heels, who held advantages in shots (44-32), ground balls (35-31) and faceoffs (13-of-22).
• Collin Krieg posted 14 saves in goal for the Tar Heels with seven in each half. He allowed just one goal with the seven saves after halftime.
 
Up Next
Johns Hopkins will return to action on Saturday, February 18 when the Blue Jays make the short trip to Loyola Maryland to take on the Greyhounds (12 pm).