BALTIMORE, Md. -- Johns Hopkins junior attackman Bobby Benson's second goal of the game, off an assist from sophomore midfielder Kevin Boland, with 3:29 remaining in the fourth quarter proved to be the game-winner in a game of runs as the third-ranked Blue Jays slipped past seventh-ranked North Carolina, 12-11 before 5,667 at Homewood Field Friday night. The win is the second straight for Hopkins, which improves to 5-1. The Tar Heels dropped their second straight and fall to 6-2.
Benson's late-game heroics didn't appear to be necessary after Hopkins outscored Carolina, 5-2 in the third quarter to take an 11-7 lead into the fourth period. The Blue Jays led 6-5 at the half and were up 7-6 midway through the third quarter before ripping off four straight goals in a span of just under four minutes to take what appeared to be an insurmountable 11-6 lead.
Sophomore midfielder Conor Ford opened the four-goal spree for the Blue Jays with a tally at the 6:16 mark off a feed from Benson. Junior Adam Doneger, freshman Peter LeSueur, and Boland all scored in a span of just 1:22 late in the period to push the lead to 11-6. Ford assisted on Doneger and Boland's goals, while LeSueur and Boland's goals both came with the extra man.
Bobby Benson and Kevin Boland
The Tar Heels started the comeback late in the third quarter as Tim Gosier's unassisted goal with just 30 seconds left in the period ignited what would become a 5-0 North Carolina run. Steve Will and Andrew Lucas scored in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter to make it 11-9 and Gosier's second unassisted goal with 7:24 remaining drew the Tar Heels to within 11-10. The teams each had possessions over the ensuing two minutes, but it was North Carolina's Pat Jackson who would score the next goal as his tally at the 4:57 mark tied the game. That set the stage for Benson's game-winner.
Hopkins opened the game strong, scoring the first three goals of the game in the opening seven minutes. Doneger and Joe McDermott both scored unassisted goals in the first three minutes, while freshman Kyle Barrie scored the first of his three goals at the 8:55 mark to give JHU a quick 3-0 lead. The teams traded the next four goals, with Jackson and Steve Will sandwiching goals around a Doneger tally in the last five minutes of the first quarter before Barrie's second goal of the game made it 5-2 less than two minutes into the second quarter. After Benson's first goal made it 6-2 Hopkins, Carolina punched home the final three goals of the first half to trim the deficit to 6-5. Kyle Bell scored once and Mike McCall tallied twice for the Tar Heels in the three-goal run, which merely set the stage for the wild second half.
John Haus
Doneger and Barrie each scored a game-high three goals for the Blue Jays with Barrie adding an assist as well. Benson added the two goals and three assists, while Ford chipped in with one goal and three assists. Senior Nick Murtha registered 13 saves in goal, including nine in the fourth quarter for the Blue Jays, who have now won eight straight against North Carolina.
Jackson, McCall, Gosier, and Steve Will all scored two goals for the Tar Heels, who also got a goal and two assists from Lucas. Freshman goalie Paul Spellman registered 16 saves in goal for North Carolina, which outshot the Blue Jays, 39-38, but lost the ground ball war, 39-26. Hopkins also won 15-of-25 faceoffs, including 13-of-18 over the final three quarters.
Johns Hopkins will next be in action on Tuesday when the Blue Jays travel to Villanova, while North Carolina hosts Virginia next Saturday.
Willie Scroggs coached UNC to National Championships
Washington Redskins' Defensive Coordinator Marvin Lewis enjoys the game
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