The North Carolina Tar Heels women's lacrosse team represents the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I women's lacrosse<n.d>”Women’s Div 1.” Laxpower.com. Active, Web. 22 March 2014.<http://www.laxpower.com/update14/binwom/rating01.php>. and currently competes as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). North Carolina is led by head coach Jenny Levy. The Tar Heels have won four national championships, in 2013, 2016, 2022, and 2025.
History Program beginnings UNC started a women's lacrosse program in 1994 due to Title IX.Cena, Alex. “Stories of the Year: No. 1: North Carolina Captures First Title.” Inside Lacrosse. Perform, 2 Jan. 2014. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. <http://women.insidelacrosse.com/news/2014/01/02/stories-year-no-1-north-carolina-captures-first-title>. Jenny Levy, a recent graduate from the University of Virginia was hired as the head coach. Reflecting on why she was hired Levy stated, “I was 24 years old, and I think I got hired because I was pretty cheap, very ambitious and high energy, I believed in the school and what we could sell here to student-athletes with academic opportunity and great tradition. I focused on what I knew and could do.”
The task of creating a successful women's lacrosse team was challenging; during the preliminary years of the program Levy had only a part-time assistant and a small budget.Cena, Alex. “Stories of the Year: No. 1: North Carolina Captures First Title.” Inside Lacrosse. Perform, 2 Jan. 2014. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. <http://women.insidelacrosse.com/news/2014/01/02/stories-year-no-1-north-carolina-captures-first-title> She still managed to bring in talented recruits, some of which were transfers and some were members of the UNC women's soccer team, which at the time had 14 NCAA Championships in 16 years.
Another obstacle was being a part of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), which had the University of Maryland and the University of Virginia, two established women's lacrosse teams. Levy stated, “we rose pretty quickly, but there was not a lot of foundation, and it is very hard to establish tradition when you are a young program; sitting where I am today, I have learned that it takes a while to establish things that identify with the program that is unique to just that program.”
Although the task at hand was difficult the Tar Heels started out with success early on with a 12–4 record in its first varsity season of 1996. In their second year, UNC made the NCAA semifinals with a 14–4 record, tallying two victories against the Virginia Cavaliers. In UNC's third season, the Tar Heels beat the eventual NCAA champion Maryland two times and reached the semifinals of the NCAA again. By the third season in program history UNC claimed the number 2 overall ranking.
Levy's program grew stronger as years passed and certain perks came along with that success; Levy was granted a full-time assistant and UNC started to increase their athletic support staff overall.
Levy spoke of the early years saying “It was a gradual process of pushing and asking; it was a process for all Carolina sports, and slowly we have made progress with that, but even with it, the athletic program has been very successful.”
2013 national championship When asked about constructing a national championship-type team, Head Coach Levy stated that “its not just a one-year thing for us.""Q&A: UNC WOMEN’S LACROSSE COACH JENNY LEVY." Interview by Dave O'Sullivan. Glory Days Magazine 4 June 2013: n. pag. http://acglorydays.wordpress.com/. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. <http://acglorydays.wordpress.com/2013/06/04/qa-unc-womens-lacrosse-coach-jenny-levy/>. The team expects success because they have been a perennial final four team for the past 5 years. Even though they had not won a national title until 2013 they expect to be in a position to do so year in and year out. She stressed the importance of the recruiting process; the team consists of not only talented lacrosse players, but also hard workers with an ability to sacrifice self-interest for the team. The freshmen are expected to be on “a constant ascension of personal development, athletically, academically, and in the community."
The 2013 Tar Heels had a small senior class with only 5 players<n.d>“UNC Women’s Lacrosse Record.” Goheels.com. NeuLion, Inc. Web. 20 March 2014.<http://www.goheels.com/SportSelect.dbml?SITE=UNC&DB_OEM_ID=3350&SPID=12981&SPSID=668067 >. and ended their previous season with an early loss in the post season (their first time not making it to the final-four in three years). This was the first year that Katrina Dowd joined the coaching staff to help build a dynamic attacking unit.<n.d> “UNC Women’s Coaching Staff: Katrina Dowd.” goheels.com. NeuLion, Inc. Web. 22 March 2014. <http://www.goheels.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3350&ATCLID=205719832>. This was a young team with a lot of change going into the 2013 season. In the season opener against The University of Florida, the Tar Heels lost 5–3. The team went on an 11-game winning streak after the loss to Florida, but the margins of victory were not very large. Their most notable win during the 11 game winning streak was their 11–8 win over the reigning national champions, Northwestern. The Tar Heels went on to defeat every team they played besides Maryland once in regular season (April 6) and once in the ACC Championship (April 28). These two losses were crucial to the team's success in the NCAA tournament because they eventually took down the Terrapins in a triple-overtime thriller to secure their first national championship in the 18-year program history.
When Jenny Levy was asked: "What’s it going to take for UNC to repeat as national champions?" she responded "Nothing’s changed, but everything has changed. We’re a tough group, and I think more than anything this championship is a tipping point for us because it validates what we’ve always talked about. Now our players have experienced that and they won’t forget that. We’re going to enjoy the championship right now but we’ll begin again in August and we’ll start from the very beginning and work our way back up. It took a lot of hard work, a lot of belief and a lot of trust and I think those lessons will stay with us for a long time."
2016 national championship North Carolina won their second national championship at the 2016 NCAA Division I women's lacrosse tournament. The Tar Heels got a first round bye and defeated Duke and Notre Dame on their way to the Final Four. In the Final Four, they defeated Penn State 12-11 to advance to the national title game. In the 2016 championship game, North Carolina defeated Maryland 13-7.
2022 national championship The Tar Heels won their third national title at the 2022 NCAA Division I women's lacrosse tournament. After receiving a first round bye, UNC beat Virginia, Stony Brook, and Northwestern on their way to the national title game. In the national finals, they defeated Boston College 12-11 to win the championship.
2025 national championship North Carolina won their fourth national title at the 2025 NCAA Division I women's lacrosse tournament. The Tar Heels defeated Florida 20-4 in the Final Four and beat Northwestern 12-8 in the national title game. They finished the season with an undefeated 22-0 record.
Individual career records
RecordNumberPlayerYears Goals 334 Jamie Ortega 2018-2022 Assists 233 Katie Hoeg 2017-2021 Points 466 Jamie Ortega 2018-2022 Ground balls 200 Jenn Cook 2004–07 Draw controls 360 Ally Mastroianni 2018-2022 Saves 667 Taylor Moreno 2018-2022 Save % .592 Debbie Castine 1996–99 GAA 6.13 Debbie Castine 1996–99
Individual single-season records
RecordNumberPlayerYear Goals 109 Chloe Humphrey 2026 Assists 90 Ashley Humphrey 2025 Points 159 Chloe Humphrey 2026 Ground balls 87 Sarah Dacey 1997 Draw controls 165 Marie McCool 2018 Saves 178 Caylee Waters 2017 Save % .602 Debbie Castine 19961997 GAA 5.52 Debbie Castine 1997
Seasons
Individual honors First Team All Americans Sarah Darcey-1996<n.d> “North Carolina All Americans By Year.” Laxpower.com. Active, Web. 22 March 2014. < http://www.laxpower.com/all-amer/aa-list-college.php?gender=W&college=North%20Carolina&order=year>. Erin McGinnis- 1998 Brooke Crawford- 1998, 1999 Porter Wilkinson- 2000, 2002 Christine McPike- 2001, 2002 Andy Fortino- 2002 Kellie Thompson- 2002 Jenn Cook- 2005, 2006, 2007 Amber Falcon- 2008, 2009 Logan Ripley- 2009 Jenn Russell- 2009, 2010 Kristen Carr, 2010 Corey Donohoe- 2012, 2011 Mia Hurrin- 2011 Laura Zimmerman – 2011, 2012 Becky Lynch- 2012 Sloane Serpe- 2013, 2014 Kara Cannazzaro- 2013 Abbey Friend – 2014 Molly Hendrick - 2016 Marie McCool - 2016, 2017, 2018 Katie Hoeg - 2018, 2020, 2021 Jamie Ortega - 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 Emma Trenchard - 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 Ally Mastroianni - 2021, 2022 Taylor Moreno - 2021 Emily Nalls - 2023 Brooklyn Walker-Welch - 2023, 2025 Sam Forrest - 2025, 2026 Ashley Humphrey - 2025 Chloe Humphrey - 2025, 2026 Eliza Osburn - 2026 Tewaaraton Finalists Christine McPike, 2002 Amber Falcone, 2009 Jenn Russell, 2010 Becky Lynch, 2012 Kara Cannazzaro, 2013 Marie McCool 2017, 2018 Jamie Ortega 2021, 2022 Taylor Moreno 2021 Ally Mastroiani, 2022 Ashley Humphrey, 2025 Chloe Humphrey, 2025, 2026 Tewaaraton Winner Chloe Humphrey, 2025
Postseason Results
The Tar Heels have appeared in 24 NCAA tournaments. Their postseason record is 42–21. Year SeedRoundOpponentScore 1997 – QuarterfinalSemifinal VirginiaLoyola (MD) W, 12–11 (ot)L, 8–10 1998 #2 QuarterfinalSemifinal Temple#3 Maryland W, 10–9L, 9–14 1999 – First Round Georgetown L, 6–7 2000 #4 Quarterfinal Loyola (MD) L, 5–7 2001 #6 First RoundQuarterfinal #11 Syracuse#3 Georgetown W, 14–9L, 4–10 2002 #3 First RoundQuarterfinalSemifinal UMBCVirginia#2 Princeton W, 22–6W, 14–13 (2ot)L, 2–16 2005 – First RoundQuarterfinal #7 Penn State#2 Duke W, 7–6 (3ot)L, 7–15 2006 #5 First RoundQuarterfinal Maryland#4 Northwestern W, 9–6L, 6–17 2007 #6 First RoundQuarterfinal Richmond#3 Virginia W, 14–7L, 8–14 2008 – First RoundQuarterfinal #4 Virginia#5 Syracuse W, 11–7L, 11–13 2009 #3 First RoundQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal Towson#6 Notre Dame#2 Maryland#1 Northwestern W, 15–4W, 16–10W, 8–7L, 7–21 2010 #3 First RoundQuarterfinalSemifinal Navy#6 Virginia#2 Northwestern W, 18–5W, 17–7L, 10–15 2011 #3 First RoundQuarterfinalSemifinal Virginia#6 Loyola (MD)#2 Northwestern W, 15–7W, 16–13L, 10–11 2012 #5 First RoundQuarterfinal Navy#4 Syracuse W, 14–7L, 16–17 2013 #3 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal Loyola (MD)Virginia#2 Northwestern#1 Maryland W, 19–9W, 13–9W, 11–4W, 13–12 (3ot) 2014 #3 Second RoundQuarterfinal Georgetown#6 Virginia W, 10–8L, 9–10 2015 #2 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal FloridaPenn State#3 Duke#1 Maryland W, 11–6W, 11–8W, 16–7L, 8–9 2016 #3 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal Duke#6 Notre DamePenn State#1 Maryland W, 15–10W, 10–6W, 12–11W, 13–7 2017 #2 Second RoundQuarterfinal VirginiaNavy W, 23–12L, 14–16 2018 #2 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinal Virginia TechNorthwestern#3 James Madison W, 17–8W, 19–14L, 12–15 2019 #3 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinal FloridaVirginia Boston College W, 15–11W, 14-7L, 14–15 (2ot) 2021 #1 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinal James Madison#8 Stony Brook #4 Boston College W, 14–9W, 14–11L, 10–11 2022 #1 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal Virginia#8 Stony Brook#4 Northwestern#3 Boston College W, 24–2W, 8–5W, 15–14W, 12–11 2023 #4 First RoundSecond RoundQuarterfinal Sacred HeartRichmond#5 Denver W, 16–5W, 16–12L, 4–52024 - First RoundFlorida L, 8-172025 #1 Second RoundQuarterfinalSemifinalFinal Clemson Princeton#4 Florida#3 Northwestern W, 18-9W, 19-10W, 20-4W, 12-8
Coaching staff Jenny Levy