She designed a mural for her UNC team. Now she wants to help them win a lacrosse title.

Taylor Moreno doesn’t think art and athletics are all that different.

The North Carolina senior goalkeeper, who has led the Tar Heels lacrosse team to a 20-0 season heading into the Final Four that begins Friday, thinks her two skill sets work in harmony. On the field, she’s the last line of defense, isolated in her crease, staying mentally sharp enough to not only stop shots but rebound when she doesn’t.

Away from the field, mistakes in art are a bit more correctable; a few brushstrokes there, a few redesigns there, and the appearance is picture-perfect.

Goalies cannot be perfect. Moreno’s dual abilities make her one of the most versatile players in the nation, in a position that demands flaws.

“It’s two different realms,” said Moreno. “In terms of, my position is very technique-based, and if I’m painting or doing graphic design or drawing, that’s the same aspect. It’s a skill you have to learn, and anywhere on the field, you have to hone in on whatever specific skill sets.”

Moreno designed the mural the UNC players tap on their way onto the field for every home game. It’s a white wall, just slightly bigger than the net she plays in every week. There it reads the team’s slogan, “WE GET TO,” in signature Tar Heel blue.

She designed the team’s “Equality” warm-up shirts, which they brought to Towson ahead of their Final Four game with Boston College on Friday afternoon, in addition to the shooter shirts players wear off the field.

“We wear them the day before games, at breakfast pregame,” she said. “We’re keeping the ‘We Get To’ mantra with us.”

The mantra was selected by the team before the season, in honor of Matt DiStefano, a UNC fan who died from kidney cancer last year. Every UNC player taps it before their games, but Moreno is the one whose hands made it happen.

“As much as it was awesome for me to paint it, I think just knowing it’s a part of the program and that’s part of what our team values, that’s pretty special,” she said.

Taylor Moreno’s stats

Moreno’s career-best 6.41 goals-against average this season comes in the year she has seen the most action, at 1,047:59 minutes. Her .559 save percentage is second in the nation.

On the field, she has the trust of her teammates. Off the field, she has their respect.

“It’s amazing she is not only amazing on the lacrosse field but is so talented and creative when it comes to her artwork,” attacker Katie Hoeg said. “I mean every time she makes a new piece or draws something different, it’s still like my jaw is on the ground.”

Hoeg is one of several of Moreno’s teammates who own some of her work. For Hoeg, it’s a silhouette photo on a canvas, like so many of Moreno’s teammates have received.

Especially in a season apart while together in a pandemic, it has been Moreno’s best way to form bonds this year.

“Coming into this fall, being a goalie, they definitely kept goalies away from each other and that’s usually who we are with,” said Moreno. “It’s a bit of a change and something we had to get used to.”

That isolation works differently for goalies. If they miss time, it affects the entire operation on the field. Until coronavirus protocols were relaxed earlier this month, Moreno and the other UNC goalies have dealt with that at a different level than their teammates.

Two ACL injuries and rehabs

Her gifts to her teammates, along with the mural, have been a way to keep connected.

Her passion for artwork comes from a family of artists. Her athletic abilities come from within.

Moreno grew up playing soccer, football, track, basketball, and even Taekwondo before settling into her path in lacrosse. Her ability to multitask is one of the reasons she finds success in the cage.

“Being a goaltender takes a lot of time and patience,” she said. “So does being an artist.”

When Moreno got to North Carolina, she was coming off of an ACL tear in her last year of high school. She tore it again as a freshman at UNC, leading to her current redshirt status.

The type of patience it takes to rebound from not one but two ACL tears and rehabs, return to the net at a high level, and be arguably the best in the nation is like its own form of art.

Moreno’s path to being a national champion goes through conference rival Boston College.

Her teammates have confidence in her to be the leader and glue of the group.

“She really goes to show how student-athletes have other passions outside of sports, too,” Hoeg said. “How we can be talented and versatile in a lot of different ways.

“Every time she does something, it’s like I’m asking, ‘How did you do that?’ ”

UNC vs. Boston College: NCAA women’s lacrosse semifinal

When: Noon, Friday

Where: Towson, Maryland

Watch: ESPNU

This story was originally published May 27, 2021 at 3:30 PM.