University of Albany

Score: UAlbany 6, No. 3 North Carolina 24
 
Location: Dorrance Field in Chapel Hill, N.C.
   
Records: UAlbany (11-6, 6-0 America East) | No. 3 North Carolina (13-4, 2-2 ACC)
  
Short Story: The University at Albany men's lacrosse team was unable to overcome the third-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday afternoon, falling 24-6 in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
Key Stat Lines  

• Ryan Doherty and Alex Pfeiffer each scored twice. Doherty added an assist for a team-high three points.
• Kevin Carney and Teharonhiorens McComber each found the back of the net once.
• Brady Smith finished with 10 saves, Timmy Vine recorded two.
• Austin Oppenheim led the faceoff unit with six wins at the X.

 
How it Happened:  

• The Tar Heels scored the first three goals of the game all within a minute of each other, scored by Dominic Pietramala, Anthony Raio and Peter Thomann.
• The score was pushed to 5-0 midway through the first quarter with two more UNC goals from Pietramala and Raio.
• Alex Pfeiffer got the Great Danes on the board with 5:37 left in the first, taking it in unassisted after coming from behind the net.
• The Tar Heels notched two more goals before the end of the first quarter to push the score to 7-1.
• The score became 10-1 within the first three minutes of the second quarter, with two goals off the stick of Pietramala and one from Mason Szewczyk.
• UNC's Pietramala was able to add two more before halftime, bringing his total to seven goals in the first half.
• UAlbany's Kevin Carney scored just before time expired on a cross-field feed from Ryan Doherty to make it 12-2 going into the half.
• The Tar Heels added two more goals before Ben Wimmer found Ryan Doherty in front of the net to make it 14-3.
• UNC's Raio scored once more, but UAlbany's Pfeiffer notched his second of the afternoon in response, 15-4.
• The Tar Heels would go on to score four more to make it a 19-4 game heading into the final quarter.
• Pietramala scored his 10^th of the game early in the fourth, which was answered by UAlbany's Doherty two minutes later.
• UNC would go on to score the next four goals.
• UAlbany's Teharonhiorens McComber scored the final goal of the game with 30 seconds remaining, making the final score 24-6.

 
Next: With the loss, the 2026 season comes to a close for the Great Danes. The team finishes with their 12^th America East title in program history, and 13^th NCAA Tournament appearance.
 
Social Central: Stay up to date with UAlbany men's lacrosse by following the team on X (@UAlbanyMLax), Instagram (@ualbanymlax), and Facebook for all of the latest news and highlights throughout the year.