It was an emotional night as the Virginia volleyball team took the court Friday evening against top-ranked California, a team which had yet to drop a set all year.
ACC Commissioner John Swofford addresses a hall filled with reporters, attempting to convince the room that his conference's recent NCAA infractions are an aberration, not a trend. "Any time one of our schools has an NCAA problem, wherever it is, whichever one it is, I'm disappointed and concerned because that's not who we are as a league," he said. Swofford paints a picture of the ACC as a balanced conference - one that may not have produced recent national championships, but still prides itself on sending players to the NFL.
Virginia's four-way quarterback competition dominated preseason press, but perhaps more important than the arm throwing the ball are the hands which will catch it. "I think the better our receivers are in running their routes, the better it's going to make it for those young quarterbacks to throw where they're supposed to throw," coach Mike London said.
A bowl game - it's in the forefront of collegiate players' minds all across the nation. And while many gridiron warriors mask their desires for a coveted postseason appearance with a one-game-at-a-time attitude, wide receiver Kris Burd and the rest of the seniors on the Virginia football team are not shying away from the fact that they are already freeing up their schedule during the months of December and January. "Our first year, we went to the Gator Bowl, and I feel like you're not really experiencing college football without going to a bowl game," Burd said.
[caption id="attachment_44710" align="alignleft" width="278" caption="Senior defensive end Cam Johnson highlights the group of 10 defensive starters which the Virginia coaching staff welcomed back for the 2011 campaign.
[caption id="attachment_44708" align="alignleft" width="157" caption="Freshman midfielder Eric Bird earned the praise of coach George Gelnovatch after displaying crisp passing skills during Virginia's 7-1 rout of Richmond Monday.
[caption id="attachment_44706" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Sophomore defensive back Chloe Pendlebury, who led the ACC with four defensive saves in 2010, wishes to see a greater level of team-wide focus.
With a solid performance at last weekend's Marriott Cavalier Classic already under its belt, the Virginia volleyball team gears up to host another tournament at Memorial Gym this weekend.
While the Virginia football team has struggled to make its mark in the win column during the past three losing seasons, the Cavaliers, nevertheless, have continued to churn out plenty of NFL-caliber players.
The following column is written and dedicated to Arian Foster. For those of you who may not know, Arian tweaked his hamstring in the preseason and, understandably, this did not make him very happy.
[caption id="attachment_44628" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Sophomore forward Gloria Douglas fired home a rebound in the 86th minute to complete Virginia's comeback victory against the Red Storm.
Yes, you read that headline correctly. Earlier this week I had a conversation with a friend who was down on the Virginia football program.
[caption id="attachment_44561" align="alignleft" width="196" caption="After jockeying for the role of starting signal caller throughout training camp, sophomore Michael Rocco nabbed a vote of confidence from the Virginia coaching staff.
One of the few things I remember from the 1996 presidential election is the contentious issue of school uniforms.
[caption id="attachment_44557" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Just three games into the year, junior midfielder Erica Hollenberg has already matched her 2010 season total with three assists.
"Yeah, well, you're ugly." This is how most arguments end at my house. After going at it with my brother for a good 20 minutes about what constitutes a sport, he's clearly had enough.
[caption id="attachment_44490" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="After tying for the team lead with four assists last season, junior midfielder Ari Dimas almost created the equalizer against West Virginia when his corner kick found freshman midfielder Eric Bird, whose header bounced off the post.
[caption id="attachment_44488" align="alignleft" width="156" caption="Junior middle blocker Jessica O'Shoney picked up right where she left off last season - when she totaled 250 kills - as she finished the three-game weekend with 29 kills, good for second-most on the team.
[caption id="attachment_44486" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="With three more goals and one assist against Liberty, junior forward Caroline Miller already has equaled her 10 points from 2010 in three games this year.
The Virginia field hockey team opened its season at home with a bittersweet opening weekend. Friday evening, the Cavaliers defeated Virginia Commonwealth, 8-1, before falling to Penn State Sunday in a disappointing 3-0 loss. "They know how they can play when we run the system, and what happens if you don't run the system," coach Michele Madison said. The No.
