The men's lacrosse team looks to resurrect its chances of an NCAA bid at this weekend's ACC tournament by revenging previous losses against conference foes.
The quest begins with a semifinal matchup against the host, No. 6 North Carolina (7-3, 2-1 ACC), in tonight's late game. If the No. 14 Cavaliers (4-6, 1-2) win, they will face the victor of No. 3 Maryland (8-2, 3-0), the tournament's top seed, and No. 16 Duke (4-6, 0-3) in the final Sunday afternoon. Even if the Cavaliers win the ACC tournament, they must defeat Penn State (5-5) May 8 to be NCAA-eligible.
Virginia earned the No. 3 seed in the ACC tournament by virtue of prior losses to the Tar Heels and Terrapins and a 13-4 victory over the Blue Devils in the Cavaliers' last contest.
In the Duke game, Virginia received a hat trick each from midfielders Matt Poskay and Foster Gilbert and attackman Joe Yevoli. Goaltender Tillman Johnson, playing in his last game at Klöckner Stadium, made 13 saves on 16 shots on goal.
Attackman Matt Ward, who leads the team with 22 goals and 33 points in 10 games, added two goals in the Duke contest. Ward's best performance of the season came against North Carolina, when he netted five goals and dished out two assists in Virginia's close 11-9 loss at Fetzer Field in Chapel Hill.
Ward likens the situation with North Carolina to last year, when regular-season defeats against Johns Hopkins and Maryland were avenged in the NCAA tournament.
"It's a rematch, but I am up and willing for the challenge because those are the games that we love to play," Ward said. "Last year we lost two games during the season, and we went back and revenged those. Hopefully that serves as some motivation for this weekend, because we have to play two teams that we have lost to, and maybe we'll have a chance to get back at them."
In the North Carolina game, Johnson had a solid performance, with 16 saves on 27 shots on goal. Attackman John Christmas, the team's third-leading scorer, added two goals. Hunter Kass and Jared Little had the other tallies, their second and third goals of the year, respectively.
North Carolina was led in the previous meeting with the Cavaliers by goaltender Paul Spellman, who had 13 saves on 22 shots on goal, many of which came during a 5-0 UNC run late in the second half that erased a 7-6 Virginia lead. The Tar Heels' leading scorer, attackman Jed Prossner, who is tied for the conference lead with 27 goals on the season, was held to only one assist in the contest.
Prossner's lack of production was compensated for by a balanced attack, as nine different Carolina players scored in the Virginia game. Attackmen Ryan Blair and Andrew Lucas each tallied twice, while Lucas and the team's second-leading scorer, Scott Falatach, added two assists each.
North Carolina has played an extremely challenging schedule, with four of their seven wins coming against teams in the top 20. Additionally, the Tar Heels' three losses have been to No. 1 Johns Hopkins, No. 2 Navy in overtime, and No. 3 Maryland, all by one goal.
Coach Dom Starsia acknowledges Carolina's talent but hopes that his young team can rise to the challenge.
"We'll have our hands full playing UNC on their home field -- they are a very good lacrosse team," Starsia said. "But [the ACC tournament] is what it is. I think the kids enjoy it, but it's a nightmare really to think that we have to go back down there and play them again. But we've just got to go down there and get it done -- there are no easy opponents."
In the other semifinal, Duke enters the ACC tournament on a five-game losing streak after starting the season 4-1. The Blue Devils are led up front by freshman attackman Matt Danowski, who has team-highs with 17 goals and 28 points. Attackmen Dan Flannery and Chris Haunss add scoring balance with 26 and 24 points, respectively.
Maryland comes into the ACC tournament with many conference high-water marks, including the top offense, at 11.80 goals per game, and the top defense, allowing only 7.20 goals per game. Sophomore attackman Joe Walters leads the ACC with 41 points and is tied with Carolina's Prossner at 27 goals. Goaltender Tim McGinnis has a 7.20 GAA and a save percentage of 63.8, both tops in the conference. The Terrapins' two losses on the season have come to No. 1 Johns Hopkins and No. 2 Navy.
Fighting for their NCAA tournament lives, the Cavaliers will look to feed off the Duke victory and win a bid, three victories away.
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