The No. 4 Tar Heels had taken control of the No. 2  Terps with three straight goals to end the first quarter. And when North Carolina extended that streak  with a goal seven minutes into the second quarter to make the score 4-1, it seemed as if the dominance would continue.

But the Terps finally responded exactly two minutes later. With 6:21 remaining in the first half, Terps’ third-team midfielder Owen Blye served as the unlikely spark for his team, scoring his fist career goal to bring the Terps within two.

That spurred an offensive surge for the Terps, who held possession for much of the rest of the quarter. Miidfielder Adam Sear scored a man-up goal with 3:03 on the clock, putting momentum firmly in the Terps’ corner, and less than a minute after that, attackman Ryan Young put the ball in the cage, putting the Terps on even footing with the Tar Heels at the intermission.

Kate Yanchulis is the Terrapin men’s lacrosse team beat writer for The Diamondback . She can be reached at kyanchulisdbk@gmail.com.

The No. 4 Terps (6-0) are losing 3-1 to the No. 2 Tar Heels (8-0)  after the first 15 minutes of the ACC rivalry game.

The North Carolina attack had a little difficulty finding a rhythm with leading attackman Billy Bittter sitting out the game with a leg injury. Not many specifics were given, but though Bitter is dressed, a team doctor who examined his injury before the match did not clear him to play.

The Terps jumped early, as short stick midfielder Dean Hart scoring a transition goal off an assist from long pole Brian Farrell just more than one minute into the game. But they have struggled since, as the Tar Heels have prevented them from getting opportunities in six-on-six play, often by cutting off clear attempts and keeping the ball in Terp territory.

Coach Dave Cottle expected this from North Carolina. Earlier this week, he said, “Carolina presents a challenge for clearing. They do a lot of different things riding, so we’re going to have to be sharp. That’s going to be a big part of the game, if we can continue to clear throughout.”

And with the Terps’ troubles so far, the Tar Heels have had time to adjust to the absence of Bitter. After six scoreless minutes to start the game, they have taken a three-goal run to take a 3-1 lead.

“I just think they’re sound,” Cottle said of the Tar Heels. “There’s not a weakness on that team.”

Kate Yanchulis is the Terrapin men’s lacrosse team beat writer for The Diamondback . She can be reached at kyanchulisdbk@gmail.com.

With a 10-7 win against Penn on Monday, the Terrapin men’s lacrosse team started its season with a five-game winning streak for the first time since 2004. But the lackluster victory against the unranked Quakers was not the dominant statement the No. 6 Terps hoped to make.

“The disappointing thing for us is we had a bunch of opportunities and we just didn’t take advantage,” said coach Dave Cottle.

The Terps outshot Penn 33-20, but only 30 percent of those found the back of the net, resulting in a disappointing showing in which the Terps never fully took control. The effort resembled their 12-8 win against Towson just two days earlier, in which the Terps held the lead throughout but could not put the winless Tigers away.

Still, the team’s trio of junior attackman, Grant Catalino, Travis Reed and Ryan Young, together contributed six goals and seven assists while giving up just three turnovers in Monday’s game at Ludwig Field, much better than their performance on Saturday.

Against Towson at Byrd Stadium, the entire starting lineup scored just two goals, Catalino didn’t have a shot, and the Terps had to rely on second team midfield to produce half of the goals. Facing Penn, Catalino trumped the starters’ combined production against the Tigers by himself, with two goals and four assists.

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Here are some thoughts compiled from the Athletic Department conference room, where I caught the Terps’ scrimmages against Princeton and Stevenson (formerly Villa Julie). It’s the second weekend of scrimmages for the team, which had contests with Delaware and Loyola (Md.) last weekend.

— Brian Farrell has moved back to close defense after spending last season as the Terps primary long stick. But despite the position change, the 6-foot-5 240 pound junior hasn’t lost his eagerness in the transition game (He had eight goals and two assists last season). Saturday, Farrell often released upfield following a shot, and the goalies like to look for the big fella, who is an easy target on clears. 

—  Farrell’s speed on the break ignited the most impressive play of the first contest, against Princeton. After receiving an outlet pass, Farrell charged across midfield and found attackman Grant Catalino on the wing. Catalino moved it to Travis Reed, who was breaking from behind the cage. Reed then used a series of fakes before tucking the ball into the top right corner as the goalie stumbled backwards into the net. 

— Bryn Holmes is looking like an even better face off option for the Terps this season. Against Princeton he managed to win 11-of-15 draws, including the first five he took. Inside Lacrosse Magazine had a piece recently on the improvement of face-off specialists with age.  Perhaps, with some new tricks up his sleeve, he can keep the Terps from expending too much energy on defense. Holmes ranked 17th in the nation in face off percentage (. 561) in 2008.

— Senior midfielder Jeff Reynolds was looking for his shot early and often. Reynolds likes to sweep the top of the box, and has a propensity for the running jump-shot. He finished with three goals against Princeton. Expect Reynolds to play on the first midfield line with Dan Groot and Jeremy Sieverts.

— Much has been made of junior transfer Will Yeatman, who joined the Terps after receiving his release from Notre Dame. On the field, Yeatman looks worthy of the hype. His physical presence is unmistakable given his 6-foot-6, 260 pound frame, and he yet looked shockingly nimble. Scoring two goals and adding an assist, Yeatman is a capable finisher with both hands. Fun Fact: SID Patrick Fischer said the team had to order gloves specially for Yeatman because of his gargantuan hands. I can attest to this as the recipient of a monster hand shake after meeting with the San Diego native for an interview last week. 

— Freshman attackman Joe Cummings could be a player to watch this season. The attack is pretty jam-packed at this point with Yeatman, Catalino, Reed and Ryan Young, but Cummings could very well see some time as an offensive midfielder. Cummings can score the ball (two goals against Princeton) and several players have mentioned that they liked what they have seen from him in practice.

— Not much to say about the scrimmage with Stevenson. It’s mostly reserves fighting for playing time and I’m trying to get out of here and hit up Bagel Place. 

— Finally, the Terps will have new jerseys this season. I don’t have all the details, but Fischer said the kits have a new gold and black checked piping on the sleeves. He said there was nothing too crazy going on with the numbers so hopefully this will be a classy look for the Terps. Unlike, say, these monstrosities.

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