via UF press release, by Katie Callahan, photo by Andy Mead

BOX SCORE

Sarah Reznick registered 14 saves in the cage for Florida; LoPinto pitched in a hat trick

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The seventh-ranked Florida women’s lacrosse team dropped a 12-5 road contest to the No. 1 North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday afternoon.

The Gators move to 1-1 on the season, while North Carolina improves to 3-0.

UF was led by a three-goal performance from Emma LoPinto, while Emily Heller and Danielle Pavinelli each pitched in one goal of their own on the afternoon. Pavinelli also added a team-high two assists in the game.

Heller and Liz Harrison led the way in the draw circle, coming up with two wins apiece.

Defensively, the Gators totaled six caused turnovers, led by two from Pavinelli. Heller, Paisley Eagan, Shelton Sawers and Theresa Bragg each added one in the game.

Three Florida players recorded a team-best two groundballs in the game: Pavinelli, Heller, Sawers.  

Sarah Reznick had a day in the cage for Florida, finishing the afternoon with 14 saves against the No. 1 Tar Heels and a .538 save percentage. With her first save of the day, she tied the program record for consecutive games with a save at 53 (Mikey Meagher, 2010-13).

The Gators return to Donald R. Dizney Stadium on Saturday, March 25 to take on the No. 2 Maryland Terrapins. Opening draw is slated for 12 p.m. on ESPN+

Records
No. 7 Florida (1-1)
No. 1 North Carolina (3-0)

How It Happened

• The defensive effort was the star of the first quarter, with both teams combining for just one goal. UNC scored the only goal of the opening frame with 7:38 remaining and Reznick came up with five saves in first 15:00.
• North Carolina scored three goals within the first four minutes of the second quarter, taking the 4-0 lead with 11:01 left to play. The Tar Heels then tacked on two more goals throughout the frame to take the 6-0 advantage into the locker room.
• In the first half alone, Reznick tallied 11 saves with a .647 save percentage.
• The Gators used three-straight goals to start the second half, with Emily Heller netting the first goal of the day just 39 seconds into the frame to cut the deficit to five.
• LoPinto registered back-to-back scores to pull Florida within three with 11:57 remaining in the third. Her first goal came off a pass from Pavinelli, then she followed that with a free-position conversion.
• North Carolina got one back, but LoPinto tallied her second hat trick in as many games, scoring on another pass from Pavinelli with 7:44 left in the third. The Tar Heels closed out the frame with two-straight goals, taking the 9-4 lead into the final quarter.
• The first two goals of the fourth belonged to North Carolina, with UNC pulling ahead seven with just over eight minutes left to play.
• The Tar Heels tacked on one more with 5:54 remaining, but Pavinelli answered with her first of the day to extend her streak of consecutive games with a goal to 25. That goal closed out the scoring for both teams on Saturday afternoon.

Notables

• Streaking: Sarah Reznick has recorded a save in 53-straight games, tying the program record set by Mikey Meagher (53 games, 2010-13)
• Streaking: Danielle Pavinelli has registered a point in 27-straight games and a goal in 25-straight games
• Streaking: Emma LoPinto has tallied a point in 21-straight games
• Streaking: Emily Heller had recorded a draw control in 25-straight games, the fourth-longest streak in program history
• Streaking: Liz Harrison has recorded a draw control in 21-straight games, the sixth-longest streak in program history  

Career-Highs

• Theresa Bragg set a new career-high in caused turnovers with one and tied her career-best with one groundball
• Kaitlyn Davies registered the first draw control of her career

Up Next

• The Gators return to Donald R. Dizney Stadium on Saturday, March 25 to take on the No. 2 Maryland Terrapins
• Opening draw is slated for 12 p.m. on ESPN+

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