Greyhounds pose difficult first test

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The Cavaliers will come into the season with an abundance of experienced players on attack and defense, but the midfield will feature some new faces. The team will rely on 11 freshmen to contribute immediately, and veteran teammates have expressed confidence that the young players are ready for the college level.

The freshmen's first assignment is a difficult one, so their teammates will try to support them as much as possible to ease the pressure.

"Our chemistry is what we're going to fall back on," coach Julie Myers said. "It's what's going to get us through tough moments. The girls have done a nice job of including a lot of new faces."

A year ago, Virginia hosted Loyala to kick off the season but suffered a disappointing 15-11 loss. Despite the loss, Virginia holds a 21-7-1 advantage in the all-time series between the two schools. The Cavaliers are optimistic that they can learn from last year's defeat and start the 2011 campaign in the win column after a long offseason of preparation.

"We had a hard practice [Tuesday]," senior defender Molly McClintic said. "We had to run a lot so I think we're definitely there fitness-wise. This week, I think we'll be more than ready."

The Cavaliers will no longer have All-Americans Kaitlin Duff and Brittany Kalkstein in the midfield, but the Greyhounds have experienced some roster turnover of their own. Loyola midfielder Emily Gibson burned the Cavaliers for five goals last year but graduated in the spring. Loyola boasts another experienced offensive weapon this year, however. The Cavaliers will need to contain senior midfielder Grace Gavin, who scored four goals against Virginia and led Loyola with 64 on the season.

Virginia's leading returning scorer is junior Charlie Finnigan, who tallied 34 goals and 15 assists last year. Although Finnigan will lead the offense, her load will be reduced by the return of Baker and junior Josie Owen, whose seasons ended early because of injuries last year.

"[The rehab] was a lot of work, but it was really helpful to have Josie and Bailey to workout with," said Baker, referring to junior defender Bailey Fogarty, who also spent the offseason recovering from injury.

Those scorers will be tested immediately. After beginning the season with road games against Loyola, Richmond and Syracuse, Virginia will return home to host defending national champion Maryland in early March. The Cavaliers eventually will face four of the six teams ranked ahead of them nationally, so a strong start to the season would be a big boost for the team.

Regardless of the danger that lies ahead on Virginia's schedule, none of the opponents will be as difficult to cope with as the last year's loss of teammate Yeardley Love. The team will honor her in a ceremony before a home game against Penn State March 6 in which Love's No. 1 jersey will be retired.

"That's going to be an emotional day, but hopefully in a positive way," Myers said. "It'll make us feel good to remember [Yeardley] and honor her, as well as hopefully playing great afterwards"

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