UNC WLAX downs Stanford on Sunday for ninth ACC Championship

Heading into Sunday's ACC Championship vs. Stanford, the UNC women's lacrosse team already had eight titles to its name.

After Sunday's final horn, North Carolina secured its ninth conference championship in program history, downing the Cardinal 12-8.

Playing inside Charlotte's American Legion Memorial Stadium, the Tar Heels (16-1, 10-0 ACC) rode a dominant first half to victory. Initially trailing 2-0, UNC embarked on a 4-goal run and took the lead for good. Addison Patillo began North Carolina's run, Chloe Humphrey tied things at 2-all, Pattillo scored again and Eva Ingrilli scored the fourth goal.

Humphrey, who netted a first-half hat trick, ended her day with four goals to lead the Tar Heels. Humphrey now has 92 goals in just her sophomore season, breaking her own program record in the process.

Stanford (15-4, 8-2 ACC) fought back, closing its deficit to one goal (4-3, 5-4) in both the first and second periods. Rylee Bouvier netted the first half's final goal, but after Humphrey netted two more goals and Pattillo added another.

UNC continued its scoring barrage quickly out of halftime, with Kate Levy netting her second tally just 1:19 into the third quarter. Eliza Osburn scored her first goal just over four minutes later, then Humphrey added her fourth score and extended North Carolina's already-big lead to 11-5.

The Cardinal made things interesting, closing its gap with three straight goals between the third and fourth quarters. Levy slammed the door on any potential upset, completing her hat trick with 33 seconds left.

The Tar Heels now await their NCAA Tournament opponent, which they'll discover during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Sunday, May 3 at 9 p.m. ET

For now, UNC can celebrating its ninth ACC championship. The ultimate prize, though, is winning its and fifth in program history.