UNC lacrosse obliterates UAlbany in NCAA Tournament opener Saturday

The UNC men's lacrosse team began its NCAA Tournament run on Saturday, welcoming UAlbany to Dorrance Field on an overcast Saturday in Chapel Hill.

Coming off a 16-6 loss to Virginia in the ACC Championship Game, North Carolina needed a bounce-back victory in the worst way.

Thanks to a career day from attackman Dominic Pietramala, the Tar Heels dominated the Great Danes, 24-6 from the opening face-off.

Pietramala netted 10 goals for UNC (13-4, 2-2 ACC), breaking the NCAA Tournament single-game goal record. Pietramala opened North Carolina's scoring party just over three minutes in, then completed his hat trick with one second remaining in his team's 7-goal first quarter.

Pietramala finished with seven goals by halftime, scoring four of the Tar Heels' five in second quarter action. After two more in the third and his 10th in the fourth, Pietramala had the record all to himself.

UNC built a 12-2 lead by halftime, scoring seven first quarter goals and five in the second. North Carolina stayed on the gas pedal out of halftime, netting seven third quarter goals and five more in the fourth.

THE TAR HEELS TAME THE GREAT DANES 😤🐏

Led by Dom Pietramala's record-smashing 10-goal performance, @UNCMensLacrosse blitzes past @UAlbanyMLax in the NCAA Tournament First Round. pic.twitter.com/NNcH6YpZEV— TLN 🥍 (@LacrosseNetwork) May 9, 2026

Alex Pfeiffer and Ryan Doherty scored two goals apiece for Albany (11-6, 6-0 America East), which proved outmatched against a far superior Tar Heels squad.

UNC gets a much-needed week off, then travels up to Long Island for a Saturday, May 16 clash against the winner of Yale and Syracuse. North Carolina beat the Orange (11-5, 2-2 ACC) by a 14-9 mark in April, but didn't play the Bulldogs (9-5, 4-2 Ivy League) yet.

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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC lacrosse beats UAlbany, 24-6, in NCAA Tournament opener Saturday