Sometimes making history can look pretty routine. For the Virginia volleyball team, it all began Saturday night against Miami when junior setter Emily Kirkwood handled a pass from her back row, setting up her younger sister Sarah for a kill along the right side -- a move the two have pulled off dozens of times this season and thousands of times in practice.
Here's a great stat that was announced by a member of the media peanut gallery before Al Groh's post-game press conference Saturday night: Virginia is 2-0 this year at home against top-25 opponents ... when the Cavaliers have had a player -- or four -- suspended. That record says a lot about this team's determination to stick together in the face of adversity.
There is a whole bulletin board of motivational quotes on the pool deck of the Aquatic & Fitness Center.
The women's basketball team began the season with a bang yesterday, romping EA Sports 85-55. The game was the Cavaliers' lone official exhibition game of the year and will not count towards the overall standings. Senior forward Tiffany Sardin led all scorers with 18 points and 14 rebounds. Junior guard Brenna McGuire got the scoring started for Virginia, tallying five points in the first 70 seconds, including one three-pointer.
Heading into Friday's exhibition game against Concordia, there was much apprehension surrounding the Virginia men's basketball team.
At least the Virginia women's soccer team has one load off its back. Just a week after losing to North Carolina in the ACC Tournament, the Cavaliers blew past Tennessee in a 3-0 win yesterday to advance to the third round of the NCAA playoffs for the first time in two years. "I haven't been past the second round yet," junior Shannon Foley said.
In the first three swim meets of the season, Virginia freshman diver Jackie Apple has only lost one of the six events in which she has competed. Apple's one loss occurred fairly early in last week's meet against Virginia Tech when Hokie Laura Lunn won the women's three-meter board competition.
Four Virginia football players will not participate in tomorrow's game against No. 24 Georgia Tech due to a violation of team policy, the University announced in a press release yesterday morning. The four suspended players are senior wide receiver Ottowa Anderson, junior safety Tony Franklin, sophomore defensive end Vince Redd and senior nose tackle Kwakou Robinson. "There are some internal issues that we're doing a little investigation on, and when we've culminated that process and finalized what that means, we'll make a determination on some people's status," Virginia coach Al Groh said during the ACC's weekly teleconference Wednesday. The verdict of that investigation was handed down yesterday and resulted in the loss of three established starters in Anderson, Franklin and Robinson.
Former Vice President Dan Quayle once said, "The future will be better tomorrow." For the Cavaliers, that means winning today. Starting with this weekend's double-header against Florida State and Miami, the message coming from the team has been crystal clear: In order to have a realistic shot at second place in the ACC, every one of the season's final six matches must be victories. Although this may sound overly optimistic, the Cavaliers are not kidding themselves.
Sports are ubiquitous at U.Va. People are always running. We might even be the only University to have our own running celebrity: "Crazy Running Man." Our recreational facilities are consistently rated as among the best in the nation.
The Virginia women's soccer team has dedicated much of this season to trying to repeat history. At the beginning of the season, the team hoped to match last year's record and capture its second consecutive ACC Tournament title.
It's not often that Virginia coach Al Groh matches wits against a head coach with as much college and NFL experience as himself. Georgia Tech coach Chan Gailey brings a wealth of experience from both the pro and college game.
Marlow Bruneau is not from Northern Virginia. She's not from the volleyball hotbeds of Texas or Florida either, as many of her teammates are.
When a group of seniors has donned cleats and shin guards for the final time, all that is left is the legacy that they leave behind.
CARY, N.C. -- Virginia's quest for a third consecutive conference title came to an abrupt and shocking halt Wednesday night as the No.
I'm no marketing expert by any means, but I think I have a great idea for the next commercial in the series that has become a pop culture phenomenon over the past few months. The piece would open with Dave Leitao in the midst of a press conference, with cameras flashing, discussing the current status of the Virginia basketball program.
Looking back to three years ago, when I was accepting my admission into this fine University, there was something missing that would have been quite helpful. I didn't need a warning that finding housing for second year would start the minute you moved into dorms.
After the Cavaliers dropped to a 4-3 overall record on the season with a loss at North Carolina, Virginia defensive ends Brennan Schmidt and Chris Long had had enough. Back when their season was hanging in the balance, the Cavaliers had done what no one outside of Charlottesville thought possible -- they shocked undefeated Florida State and "saved the season" in the process.But just seven days later, Virginia had inched back towards the precipice.
University of Virginia starting place-kicker Connor Hughes was named one of 20 semifinalists for the 2005 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award yesterday.
The Virginia women's basketball team will play its first competition of the season Sunday, Nov. 13 as they host EA Sports in an exhibition matchup. EA Sports, composed of former collegiate players, stands at 0-5. The game will begin at 2 p.m.
