No. 3 Terps Fall To No. 2 Tar Heels In NCAA Tournament Semifinals

Friday, May 22

Evanston, IL

3 PM

Maryland

18-4

North Carolina

19-1

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Maryland	2	2	1	1	6
North Carolina	3	5	5	3	16

Maryland huddles before facing North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament

No. 3 Terps Fall To No. 2 Tar Heels In NCAA Tournament Semifinals

5/22/2026 3:00:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score Photo Gallery

Maryland’s 18-win 2026 campaign came to a close against the defending national champions on Friday.

EVANSTON, IL — The No. 3 Terps' season came to a close with a 16-6 loss to No. 2 North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament Semifinal Round on Friday afternoon. A 13-2 run from the defending national champions lifted the Tar Heels past Maryland (13-4, 6-2 Big Ten) despite multi-goal games from two different Terps and an incredible effort from JJ Suriano in the cage.

Terp love 💖🐢 pic.twitter.com/08ynHtrYn3
— Maryland Women's Lacrosse (@MarylandWLax) May 22, 2026

Kristen Shanahan struck twice in the first quarter as she netted both of the Terps' first two goals. Suriano was tested early on, but got off to a hot start with a four-save opening frame. She finished with 11 saves in the loss.

TERPS CASH IN 💰

Kristen Shanahan opens up scoring for (3) @MarylandWLax as they take on (2) North Carolina.#NCAAWLAX x 🎥 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/VBXrN3JJaY
— NCAA Lacrosse (@NCAALAX) May 22, 2026

Lauren LaPointe opened the second quarter with her 100th goal of her career and her 65th of the season. Suriano finished the first half with seven saves, but the Tar Heels used a 5-0 run to lead at halftime in the 42nd all-time meeting between Maryland and North Carolina.

YOU CAN'T DO IT MUCH BETTER THAN THAT 😤

Lauren LaPointe scores for (3) @MarylandWLax and the score is tied 3-3. #NCAAWLAX x 🎥 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/ct0N1Iw4Lb
— NCAA Lacrosse (@NCAALAX) May 22, 2026

Kori Edmondson scored the Terps' lone goal of the third quarter, but the Tar Heels extended their lead with a five-goal quarter and Maryland was unable to rally as its incredible 2026 campaign came to a close. LaPointe and Shanahan both logged multi-point games in the season finale.

THE SPIN AND SCORE 🌪️🌪️🌪️

Kori Edmondson sends one in for (2) @MarylandWLax to narrow the deficit to four goals. #NCAAWLAX x 🎥 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/6FFRKZZBy5
— NCAA Lacrosse (@NCAALAX) May 22, 2026

North Carolina's Chloe Humphrey — the nation's leading goal scorer — netted each of the Tar Heels' first three goals during her six-point performance on Friday afternoon. Addison Pattillo also scored five goals as UNC improved to 19-1 (10-0 ACC) on the season and advanced to the 2026 NCAA Tournament Championship Game.

How It Happened:
1st Quarter:

Suriano made a save on the game's first free-position shot.
Shanahan scored on a free-position shot of her own to give the Terps a 1-0 lead in the opening minutes with her 41st goal of the season.
Suriano made another key save in the opening minutes.
UNC got on the board with a free-position shot six minutes into the game.
Back-to-back goals from Humphrey gave UNC a 3-1 lead.
Shanahan's second goal of the opening quarter made it a one-goal game with 1:39 to play.
North Carolina took a 3-2 lead into the second quarter.

2nd Quarter:

LaPointe opened the second-quarter scoring with her 65th goal of the year to tie the game.
Suriano made her sixth save five minutes into the quarter.
The Tar Heels reclaimed the lead with back-to-back goals.
Suriano came up big on a free-position shot.
North Carolina took a 6-3 lead with 5:11 to play.
Humphrey scored her fourth goal of the day with 2:33 left.
The Heels used a 5-0 run to take an 8-3 lead.
LaPointe scored her second of the quarter in the final minute.
North Carolina led 8-4 at halftime.

3rd Quarter:

The Tar Heels opened the scoring in the second half to extend their lead.
Edmondson responded with her 49th goal of the season.
UNC took a 10-5 lead with 6:33 left in the quarter.
Humphrey's fifth of the game gave the Tar Heels a 11-5 lead.
UNC scored the final four goals of the quarter to take a 13-5 lead into the final frame.

4th Quarter:

The Tar Heels used a 7-0 run across the third and fourth quarters to expand their advantage to 16-5.
Lexi Dupcak scored her 15th goal of the season in the final minute.
North Carolina closed out its win to advance to the NCAA Tournament Championship Game.

Multi-Point Terps:

LaPointe (two goals) played in her 30th-career game with multiple points and her 28th with more than one goal.
Shanahan (two goals) logged her 42nd-career multi-point game and her 29th with multiple points.

Numbers To Know:

11: Suriano made 11 key saves.
26: Maryland is 26-16 all-time against the Tar Heels.
29: Maryland played in its 29th all-time Final Four, extending the national record.
34: Shanahan finished 2026 with a team-high 34 assists.
36: Maryland played in its 36th straight NCAA Tournament, which is the longest streak in the nation.
42: Friday marked the 42nd all-time meeting between Maryland and North Carolina.
66: LaPointe ended the season as Maryland's leading scorer with 66 goals.
227: Suriano finished 2026 with 227 saves.