PHILADELPHIA
The North Carolina men’s lacrosse team played in its first NCAA semifinal in more than two decades Saturday afternoon. It had no trouble making up for lost time.
Sophomore attackman Chris Cloutier matched an NCAA tournament record with nine goals as the unseeded Tar Heels blistered seventh-seeded Loyola 18-13 at Lincoln Financial Field to advance to Monday’s title game.
Cloutier joins Syracuse’s Gary Gait (1988 quarterfinals against Navy) and Brown’s Oliver Marti (1992 first round against Loyola) as the only players to score nine goals in a game since the NCAA tournament was established in 1971.