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Expectations ran high when the University of North Carolina named Jenny Slingluff Levy its first-ever women’s lacrosse head coach in October of 1994. Given Carolina’s strong academics and rich tradition of women’s athletics that includes women’s soccer and field hockey programs that annually rank among the very best in the country, success both in the classroom and on the playing field are expected in Chapel Hill. Slingluff Levy has met and exceeded those lofty goals. The Tar Heel women’s lacrosse team annually places a significant portion of its members on the Atlantic Coast Conference Honor Roll and Dean’s List. And on the field, the Tar Heels have advanced to the NCAA Final Four twice and won two ACC regular-season titles in her six seasons, finising ranked in the Top 10 nationally five times. "With the performance of our women’s lacrosse team over its first six years, I think it has become obvious that the selection of Jenny for the job as head coach in 1994 was a magnificent choice," says Athletic Director Dick Baddour. "To have started a program from scratch, earned five NCAA Tournament bids and advanced to a pair of NCAA Final Fours in only six years is truly a remarkable accomplishment." Building a team from the ground up was a unique challenge, but Slingluff Levy led the Tar Heels to an impressive record of 12-4 and a national ranking of No. 13 in the program’s first season in 1996. In the program’s second year, Carolina took another giant step forward, posting a 14-4 record and a final ranking of No. 8. The Tar Heels advanced to the NCAA Tournament Final Four in only their second season of varsity play. In the process, Slingluff Levy was named ACC Coach of the Year. The Tar Heels showed continued improvement in 1998 as Carolina went 15-3 overall and 3-0 in the ACC. The Heels advanced to the ACC Tournament championship game and the NCAA Final Four while also winning the ACC regular-season title. Carolina was ranked No. 2 in the final IWLCA poll after spending several weeks during the course of the season as the nation’s top-ranked team. After an 8-7 campaign in 1999, the Tar Heels again advvanced to the ACC Tournament championship game and tied for the ACC regular-season title in 2000. UNC ended the season ranked No. 4 and reached the NCAA Tournament quarterfinal. In 2001, Carolina went 11-7 overall and 1-2 in the ACC, reaching the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals before losing at Georgetown. In six seasons as the Tar Heels’ head coach, Slingluff Levy has led UNC to a 72-31 record (.699) and a pair of NCAA Final Four appearances. An outstanding women’s lacrosse player at the University of Virginia from 1988-92 and an assistant field hockey and assistant women’s lacrosse coach at Georgetown University from 1993-94, Slingluff Levy was named as Carolina’s first-ever head women’s lacrosse coach in October of 1994. Slingluff Levy is a 1992 University of Virginia graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree in rhetoric and communications. She was a member of the U.S. Women’s Lacrosse National Team in 1992-93 and again in 1995. Slingluff Levy was a member of the UVa women’s lacrosse team from 1988-1992 and was named the squad’s captain and most valuable player as a senior. She led the Cavaliers to their first-ever Division I National Collegiate Women’s Lacrosse Championship in 1991. Slingluff Levy scored three goals in the championship game and five in the national semifinal game, leading to her selection as the tournament’s Most Outstanding Attacker. A first-team All-America as a junior and senior, she was named the 1992 NCAA Attack Player-of-the-Year. She led Virginia in both goals and assists in 1992 with 52 and 13, respectively, and finished with career totals of 118 goals and 34 assists. Slingluff Levy was married to Dan Levy of Baltimore, Md. in June 1998. Dan is a 1993 UNC alumnus who played lacrosse at Carolina for four years, starring on the 1991 NCAA championship team. Their son, Ryan Kane Levy, was born on Jan. 8, 2002. |
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