Leitao responds
Jeff White
Mar 10, 2009

CHARLOTTESVILLE – Before leaving for Atlanta and the ACC tournament, I spoke this afternoon to Virginia coach Dave Leitao, who for the first time publicly addressed the comments made by Mamadi Diane’s father in a story than ran Saturday in The Washington Post.

Mori Diane said Leitao didn’t return his phone calls and accused Leitao of being “demeaning” to Mamadi, a 6-5 senior from Potomac, Md. The elder Diane also said Leitao had not spoken to Mamadi the whole season.

That last assertion did not jibe with what the younger Diane had told me and other reporters Feb. 21 at N.C. State’s RBC Center. After a game in which he scored 11 points, Diane said he’d recently met with Leitao in the coach’s office at John Paul Jones Arena.

“We’ve talked,” Diane said.

The Post article ran on the day of U.Va.’s regular-season finale. It turned out to be a game to remember for Diane, for all the right seasons. He was recognized before the game and then turned in a storybook performance. Diane, who started for the 11th time this season, made the game-winning basket – a 3-pointer in the final minute – and finished with a season-high 23 points in U.Va.’s 68-63 upset of Maryland.

Leitao, who shook Mori Diane’s hand during the Senior Day family, said they didn’t get a chance to talk that day. But Leitao said he has since spoken to the family about their concerns.

“My stance is that I’ve had a really good relationship with Mamadi’s family, and I will continue to have one,” Leitao told me. “I understand levels of frustration. I think we’re all frustrated with what has happened with the season, but in no way does it diminish, I think, my relationship with them or my relationship with all of our players and their parents. I think that’s an important part of what we do, and it will continue to be.

“Just as you have with any family, there are going to be the days where you may not see everything eye to eye, but at the same point in time, I think when you have an understanding of where each other is coming from, it makes it easier for everyone to deal with situations, specifically those, like this year, where every day hasn’t been as successful.”

Diane came into the season as one of the ACC’s most experienced players and was expected to lead a young U.Va. team. In his first three seasons, the former DeMatha High star had started 65 games, and he was the Cavaliers’ top returning scorer (11.8 ppg) from 2007-08.

He had foot surgery in the offseason, though, and that may have contributed to his struggles this season. Whatever the reason, Diane has rarely looked like the player who scored 26 points against Maryland as a sophomore and made a team-high 60 treys as a junior.

He started Virginia’s first four games this year, then went to the bench. He returned to the starting lineup in early January, but his numbers didn’t change dramatically. The low point for Diane came last month, when Leitao didn’t play him during a four-game stretch that included wins over Clemson and Virginia Tech. Diane, who missed his first 21 attempts from beyond the arc this season, entered the Maryland game averaging 4.5 points.

Leitao said he believes he and Mamadi have “had normal communications throughout the four years. And again, one week it may be a lot, and another week it may not be so much. And as Mo said, which is 100 percent true, we had talked about it [leading up to the N.C. State game].

“I think you go back to the fact that it was not easy. This is a situation I don’t think I would wish on anybody. It wasn’t easy for Mo. In turn it wasn’t easy for the people that love him the most: his mother and father and his family.”

Leitao acknowledged one instance this season when Mori Diane called “and I didn’t get right back to him.” But Leitao said he delegates many responsibities during the season to his assistants, and that often includes communicating with players’ families. Leitao also agreed that playing time is not a subject that he – or any other coach, for that matter – likes to discuss with parents.

“I don’t think at any university you’re going to have – in this case we have 14 guys – have 14 conversations about if a guy played or not last night,” Leitao said. “And Mr. Diane has not ever been like that. We haven’t really ever talked about basketball. But at the same point in time, in the heat of the battle, in the middle of the season, if you receive a phone call from a parent, if it catches me at the right time, I’m going to get it, and [if not] a lot of times my staff will pick up on it.”

 

No quit in Cavaliers
U.VA. VS. BOSTON COLLEGE
ACC tournament
When:Tomorrow, 9:30 p.m.
By Jeff White
Published: March 11, 2009

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Mamadi Diane never stopped working, even when his prospects looked bleak. His teammates have shown perseverance throughout a disappointing men's basketball season for the University of Virginia.

Case in point: reserve guard Mustapha Farrakhan. After barely playing in the previous eight games, including four in which he never left the bench, the 6-4 sophomore found himself on the court Saturday during key stretches of U.Va.'s regular-season finale against Maryland.

Farrakhan responded with a solid effort: four points (on 2-for-2 shooting), one assist, one steal and no turnovers in 11 minutes. U.Va. coach Dave Leitao said he wasn't surprised. He'd seen how hard Farrakhan continued to work in practice, even when his playing time diminished.

"He's been energetic, and that's the thing about this whole group," Leitao said after U.Va. upset Maryland 68-63 on a day when Diane, in his final home game, scored a season-high 23 points.

"They haven't given up on the process whatsoever. In some strange way, when you have teams that are in the position that we've been in, some people will cash their ticket in. Nobody on this team has come close to doing that whatsoever."

The ACC tournament starts tomorrow at the Georgia Dome, and No. 11 seed Virginia (10-17) meets No. 6 seed Boston College (21-10) in a first-round game at 9:30 p.m. Pundits aren't predicting a long stay in Atlanta for the Cavaliers, but Leitao's players drew confidence from the win over Maryland.

"I think everyone on our team is really competitive, and I don't think anyone is going to give up," junior guard Calvin Baker said.

If the team's seniors -- Diane and center Tunji Soroye -- had not set such a strong example, Leitao said, perhaps things would be different. But both have battled through adversity.

The win over Maryland snapped a four-game losing streak for U.Va. Given that the Cavaliers lost four of their final seven regular-season games, it's a stretch to say they finished with a flourish. But after an embarrassingly bad first half Feb. 4 against Boston College, the Wahoos generally were competitive the rest of the regular season.

That wasn't the case during much of the first half of the Cavaliers' ACC schedule. After opening with an overtime win over Georgia Tech, U.Va. was pushed around by teams such as North Carolina, Florida, Duke and BC. But Virginia broke through Feb. 15, stunning then-No. 12 Clemson in overtime, and followed that with a resounding win over Virginia Tech in Charlottesville.

"We've been through a lot, our team, our staff, everybody -- our fans, most importantly -- in wanting us to be better and do better," Leitao said. "But it didn't happen like that. To me, it just proves something I've said all along in my lifetime: You just got to keep plugging, you got to keep plugging, you got to keep plugging, and good things will happen."

Leitao cited a conversation he had recently with former American University coach Chris Knoche, now the radio analyst for Maryland games.

Knoche "could see from the first time we played Maryland, Jan. 20, to now, we've played differently," Leitao said Saturday evening. "It hasn't always resulted in wins, hasn't always resulted in great performances or close games, but we've played different [and] better."

 

U.Va.‘s Landesberg named ACC’s top rookie
By Darryl Slater
Published: March 11, 2009

Though the University of Virginia men's basketball team struggled this year, one consistently bright spot for the Cavaliers was the play of freshman Sylven Landesberg, a 6-6 guard from Flushing, N.Y., who fulfilled his reputation as a highly regarded recruit.

After a season in which he established himself as Virginia's best player, Landesberg yesterday was named ACC rookie of the year.

He is the fourth Virginia player to win the award, joining Ralph Sampson (1980), Bryant Stith (1989) and Chris Williams (1999).

Also yesterday North Carolina junior guard Ty Lawson was named player of the year, Florida State senior guard Toney Douglas defensive player of the year and Florida State's Leonard Hamilton coach of the year.

Landesberg received 55 votes from the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association. Wake Forest forward Al-Farouq Aminu received 20.

"In the history of this university, it's been earmarked for some special players," Virginia coach Dave Leitao said. "It kind of sets up the aftermath: With that honor comes expectations that you grow and get better and not let it be the only honor they give you during your time here."

Sampson was the ACC and national player of the year in each of his final three seasons. Stith went on to make first-team all-ACC three times. He is the school's all-time leading scorer. Williams was second-team all-ACC as a sophomore and third team as a junior.

When Leitao told Landesberg on Monday that he won the award, he also informed him that he was an honorable-mention all-ACC selection. Landesberg received the fewest votes, 15, of any of the 18 players named to the first, second, third and honorable-mention teams.

"I just started thinking: If people think there's [17] people better than me in the ACC, that means I have a lot of work to do," he said, adding that he will return for his sophomore season.

"That's really going to be the main focus of my work ethic for the whole summer, just try to change people's opinions about me, just try to work my way up," he said.

Landesberg led the Cavaliers (4-12 ACC, 10-17) with 16.8 points per game, 6.3 more than their next-highest scorer, sophomore forward Mike Scott. Landesberg ranked ninth in the ACC in scoring and was the only freshman among the top 20. He also ranked second on the team in rebounds (6 per game).

Landesberg led the Cavaliers in scoring 16 times and set a freshman school record with 12 20-point games -- highlighted by a 32-point performance against Boston College on Feb. 4. It was just the fourth time in school history that a freshman had scored at least 30, though Williams still holds the freshman single-game record, with 34.

During the past 10 years in the ACC, only North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough had more 20-point games as a freshman than Landesberg. Hansbrough had 14 in 2005-06.

Landesberg ended the regular season with 453 points -- fifth on Virginia's single-season freshman scoring list. Stith has the record (513).

So the Cavaliers must advance in the ACC tournament for Landesberg to have a shot at the record. They are the 11th seed and play sixth-seed Boston College in the first round tomorrow at 9:30 p.m. in Atlanta's Georgia Dome. Landesberg made it clear yesterday that this won't be his last ACC tournament.

"I don't think I accomplished anything for me to leave [early for the NBA]," he said. "I want to have a winning record in the ACC, be at least a top-four team. I want to play in the NCAA tournament. There's a lot of things I want to accomplish before I leave this school. So I'm coming back."

RESULTS
Voting for the ACC annual awards, as voted on by 76 members of the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association:
Player of the year: Ty Lawson, North Carolina (31); Toney Douglas, Florida State (27); Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina (13); Gerald Henderson, Duke (2); Jeff Teague, Wake Forest (2); Jack McClinton, Miami (1).
Coach of the year: Leonard Hamilton, Florida State (55); Al Skinner, Boston College (10); Dino Gaudio, Wake Forest (6); Oliver Purnell, Clemson (2); Roy Williams, North Carolina (2); Gary Williams, Maryland (1).
Rookie of the year: Sylven Landesberg, Vir ginia (55); Al-Farouq Aminu, Wake Forest (20); Solomon Alabi, Florida State (1).
Defensive player of the year: Toney Douglas, Florida State (53); Trevor Booker, Clemson (15); Solomon Alabi, Florida State (3); Ty Lawson, North Carolina (2); Danny Green, North Carolina (1); Gerald Henderson, Duke (1); L.D. Williams, Wake Forest (1).

 

Landesberg: Top frosh not enough
The UVa star says the goal is to be named All-ACC.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129

On the same day that Sylven Landesberg was notified of his selection as ACC men's basketball freshman of the year, he also learned that he was an honorable-mention all-conference choice.

"I wasn't happy about it," said Landesberg, who got the word from his Virginia coach, Dave Leitao. "When he told me how many people were on the three teams and then, with the three honorable mentions, that came to 18.

"If people think that there's 18 people better than me in the ACC, that means I've got a lot of work to do."

Actually, if Landesberg was third among three players who received the 15 votes required for honorable mention, only 17 players were ahead of him. But, the message remains the same.

"After I heard that, I completely forgot about the rookie-of-the-year award," Landesberg said. "That's going to be the main focus of my work ethic for the whole summer."

Chad Ford, billed as an NBA Draft insider by ESPN.com, wrote in a Feb. 27 column that Landesberg was his top draft sleeper. Ford added that Landesberg was thinking about making himself available for the draft and "a number [of teams] haven't ruled him out as a first-round pick."

Landesberg, a 6-foot-6, 205-pounder from Flushing, N.Y., said Tuesday that he definitely would be returning to UVa for his second year.

"I don't think I accomplished anything for me to leave," he said. "As a team, we didn't have a successful season. I want to have a winning record in the ACC [and] at least be in the top four teams. I want to go to the NCAA, deep in there.

"There's a lot of things I want to accomplish before I leave this school, so I'm coming back."

Landesberg, the top scorer among ACC freshmen, carries a 16.8 scoring average into 11th-seeded UVa's game Thursday with sixth-seeded Boston College in the ACC Tournament.

For most of the season, Landesberg was on pace to break Jeff Lamp's school record for scoring average by a freshman (17.4) but he was 6-for-23 from the field during a three-game stretch prior to UVa's season finale against Maryland.

After scoring three points March 3 at Clemson, he had a two-point first half against Maryland. He finished with 14 points in a 68-63 UVa victory.

"From the beginning of the ACC season till those three [or] four games before the Maryland game, I thought I was playing pretty well," he said. "In those three or four games, I just got a little frustrated.

"Defenses starting playing me differently and a lot of things were going on. The rookie-of-the-year award never really crossed my mind but I guess, at one point, I thought I might not have a chance."

Landesberg received 55 of 76 votes, Wake Forest's Al-Farouq Aminu had 20 and Florida State's Solomon Alabi had the other.

Landesberg followed Ralph Sampson (1980), Bryant Stith (1988) and Chris Williams (1999) as Cavaliers to win the award.

"I guess it was a goal of mine," said Landesberg, who was a six-time ACC rookie-of-the-week honoree. "It wasn't the No. 1 goal.

"I thought that I was always underrated but I felt like I could compete with the top of my class [nationally].

"When I kept racking up rookie-of-the-week awards -- I didn't know about them till people kept coming around and telling me -- I was like, 'Oh, man, I'm going to have a chance now.'"
 

Rookie of year to stay at U.Va.
By Norm Wood | 247-4642
March 11, 2009

Virginia's Sylven Landesberg didn't even start thinking about become the Atlantic Coast Conference's rookie of the year until somebody pointed out early in the season he had a chance.

Landesberg's game didn't diminish any after the possibility of winning the award entered his thoughts. He earned the distinction Tuesday when the ACC released its men's basketball individual award winners. He also announced his intentions to return to U.Va. (10-17), which is seeded No. 11 in this week's ACC tournament, for his sophomore season.

"I guess it was a goal of mine," Landesberg said of being rookie of the year. "It wasn't the number one goal, but I guess it was a goal of mine. I thought I was always underrated, but I felt like I could compete with the top of my class."

North Carolina's Ty Lawson topped Florida State's Toney Douglas and UNC teammate Tyler Hansbrough for ACC player of the year. Lawson averaged 15.9 points and 6.5 assists per game in the regular season. He's also shooting 53.8 percent from the floor and sporting a 3.3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. But Lawson is questionable to play in the ACC tournament due to a right big-toe injury.

Douglas, who averages 1.9 steals per game while guarding opponents' top scoring guards, was named defensive player of the year. His coach, Leonard Hamilton, picked up the conference's coach-of-the-year award for leading No. 22 FSU (23-8) to an opening-round bye in the ACC tournament with a 10-6 conference record.

Landesberg, a 6-foot-6 native of Flushing, N.Y., will enter Thursday's game in the ACC tournament against No. 6 seed Boston College (21-10) with averages of 16.8 points per game and 34.1 minutes per game, both of which are best among ACC freshmen.

He joins Ralph Sampson (1980), Bryant Stith ('89) and Chris Williams ('99) as the fourth U.Va. men's basketball player to be named ACC rookie of the year. Landesberg finished ahead of Wake Forest's Al-Farouq Aminu in voting for the award — Landesberg had 55 votes, compared to 20 for Aminu.

Landesberg has scored 20 or more points in 12 games, a U.Va. freshman record and double the rest of the ACC's freshmen combined (six). When asked on several occasions during the season if he planned to return to U.Va. after this season, he never gave a definite answer. He did on Tuesday.

"I don't think I accomplished anything for me to leave," Landesberg said. "I don't think as a team we had a successful season. I want to have a winning record in the ACC — be at least in the top four (in the conference). I want to be able to go to the NCAA (tournament). ... There's a lot of things I want to accomplish before I leave this school, so I'm coming back."

 

Landesberg earns ACC hardware
By Whitey Reid
Published: March 11, 2009

North Carolina’s Ed Davis, the in-state product from up the road in Richmond, was the McDonald’s All-American who most Virginia fans were obsessed with getting ever since coach Dave Leitao came aboard prior to the 2005-06 season.

But it was Sylven Landesberg, the McDonald’s All-American from Queens, N.Y., that they wound up with.

On Tuesday, Landesberg beat out Davis, Wake Forest’s Al-Farouq Aminu and Florida State’s Solomon Alabi for the ACC rookie of the year award.

Landesberg received 55 votes, followed by Aminu (20) and Alabi (1). Davis, who happens to be good friends with Landesberg from their McDonald’s days, didn’t receive any votes.

The ultra-competitive Landesberg was pleased when notified by Leitao that he had won the award. Well, for about two minutes.

“When coach Leitao told me that I won this award, I was happy,” Landesberg said. “But then he also told me that I was also honorable mention for [the]

All-ACC team…that’s what really stood out to me. I wasn’t happy about that.

“He told me that there were 18 people on that. I just started thinking, ‘If people think there’s 18 people better than me than I have a lot of work to do.’ After that, I totally forgot about the rookie of the year award.”

Landesberg, one of the lone bright spots this season for Virginia fans, became the fourth UVa men’s basketball player to be named ACC rookie of the year, joining Ralph Sampson (1980), Bryant Stith (1989) and Chris Williams (1999).

Landesberg leads ACC freshmen in scoring (16.8 ppg) and minutes played (34.1 mpg). He is ranked third among conference rookies in rebounding (6.0 per game) and assists (2.7 per game). Landesberg was named ACC rookie of the week six times this season, a total that is tied for third-most in conference history.

He has scored in double figures 22 times and his 12 20-point games are a UVa freshman record.

From the season-opening game against VMI, Landesberg has been easily Virginia’s best player. Landesberg had 28 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in his college debut.

In the upset win over Clemson on Feb. 15, Landesberg hit a clutch driving layup to force overtime and helped the Cavaliers snap an eight-game losing streak.

“I think that was a pretty big win,” Landesberg said. “Our whole team stepped up in overtime and late in the game. It was just a great feeling with all the fans getting into it.”

In the last few games, Landesberg has slumped as opposing teams have begun to focus entirely on him. The freshman, however, showed signs of breaking out of it with a 14-point outing in a win over Maryland on Saturday.

Recently, there had been some speculation that Landesberg might explore his NBA draft options. However, Landesberg, once again, shot that idea down.

“I don’t think I accomplished anything for me to leave,” he said. “As a team, we didn’t have a successful season. In the ACC, I want to have a winning record and be in at least the top four teams. I want to be able to go to NCAAs.

“There are a lot of things I want to accomplish before I leave school, so I’m coming back.”

Virginia fans are certainly happy about that — even if he wasn’t their No. 1 recruiting choice.

 

Carroll, Ghitelman catapult Cavaliers past Catamounts
Ghitelman’s 10 saves in three quarters keep Virginia in lead by wide margin throughout contest; junior midfielder Brian Carroll leads attack with hat trick
Jack Bird, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Published: Wednesday, March 11 2009

Senior attack Garrett Billings contributed one goal in the Cavaliers’ 16-4 victory yesterday against Vermont. The lone goal gave Billings a team-leading 21 goals this season. Billings was one of 13 Cavaliers to score yesterday night. “Tonight wasn’t a magical effort, but it was workman-like performance.”

Virginia coach Dom Starsia is always quick to find areas in need of improvement after any victory. Last night was no different, as the Cavaliers easily overwhelmed Vermont 16-4 at Klöckner Stadium.

“I don’t think we were particularly sharp around the edges of the game,” Starsia said. “The shooting, the finishing, the opportunities — I thought we gave them opportunities on defense because we were just a half step in anticipation behind.”

Nevertheless, Virginia (8-0) was able to build an insurmountable lead against the Catamounts (2-1) going into the fourth quarter, at which point Starsia was able to unload his bench, allowing his younger players to gain game experience.

“I thought that most of the guys that got a chance to get out there kept the level of play up — that’s what we look for,” Starsia said. “I think it matters that when you work as hard as these guys do to be able to put your uniform and be able to actually get out there on a game day.”

Junior midfielder Brian Carroll led the attack for the Cavaliers, with a hat trick of goals and an assist. Freshman attack Steele Stanwick also had four points on two goals and two assists.

Right out of the gates, Virginia brought overwhelming offensive pressure with three different Cavaliers finding the back of Vermont’s net to give the Cavaliers a 3-0 lead. The close defense of the Cavaliers also was noticeable throughout the first half, as the combined efforts of junior defender Ken Clausen and his fellow close defenders forced several Vermont turnovers. The Cavaliers held the Catamounts to four goals through both good defense as well as particularly impressive play from sophomore goalie Adam Ghitelman.

“I thought Adam played very well,” Starsia said. “He’s continued to step up in almost every one of these games. This is a game where it could have been a lot uglier had he not made a couple saves at critical moments.”

As a freshman with Virginia, Ghitelman started the first 10 games of the season but was pulled in favor of then-senior goalie Bud Petit for the remainder of his freshman year.

“I got my chance to play to the best of my ability,” Ghitelman said. “I got completely better playing behind him, learning from him in practice, watching him in games, watching him in film.”

As the switch was made from a freshman to a senior goalie last year, it became apparent that a lack of confidence — rather than a lack of ability — seemed like Ghitleman’s weakness.

“Take this game tonight,” Starsia said. “In the first 10 games last year, I don’t think he had a single game like this. Last year, even though we were winning, it never felt like he was having a lot of fun. His confidence was dragging a little bit.”

Now a year older, Ghitleman’s play has seen a sharp turn around. His .589 save percentage is up from .497 last year, and he is now allowing 3.3 fewer goals per game — even after playing two of the country’s best teams, Syracuse and Cornell.

“It’s a combination of a lot of things — a little humility — and then hard work over the offseason,” Ghitelman said. “The more games I get under my belt the better.”

While Vermont may not have been Virginia’s toughest opponent this season, Ghitelman managed to put up 10 saves — tied for the third most in the games he has played this season — while playing just the first three quarters.

“I think we are seeing the benefit of the experience he had and the poise he had with being a second-year player,” Starsia said. “He’s just become a leader back there for us in a group of veterans.”

In addition to his play between the pipes, Ghitelman looked comfortable outside the cage, as he took part in Virginia’s solid 23 for 27 clearings. On more than one occasion after a save, Ghitelman was able to quickly rifle clearing passes to outlets — leading to fast breaks and quick conversions. For a team as comfortable in transition as Virginia, this flexibility from a goalie affects both sides of the scoreboard.

“His confidence continues to grow you can just see it in him,” Starsia said. “It is going to make all the difference in the world as we start to move into the month of late March and April and May.”

 

Cavaliers Run Away From Vermont 16-4
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 03/10/2009

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA—Top-ranked Virginia scored five first quarter goals to build a comfortable lead en route to a 16-4 win over Vermont Tuesday night at Klöckner Stadium.

The win was Virginia’s eighth in a row to start the season, the second year in a row the Cavaliers have opened with at least eight straight wins. Vermont, coached by former UVa All-American defenseman Ryan Curtis, lost for the first time this season to fall to 2-1.

“Tonight wasn’t a magical effort but it was workmanlike performance and it’s nice to be in a situation like this where you can get everybody in there and get everybody some real game work,” said Virginia head coach Dom Starsia.

Brian Carroll led the scoring for Virginia with three goals, while Steele Stanwick notched two goals and assisted on two others.

Danny Glading scored his only goal of the game 14 seconds in, the only goal in the first 6 minutes. Shamel Bratton and Gavin Gill scored extra-man goals just over a minute apart midway through the opening quarter as the lead grew to 3-0. The Cavaliers score on all three extra-man chances in the game.

Vermont’s Geoff Worley scored the first of his team-high two goals at the 5:30 mark, but Chad Gaudet won the ensuing faceoff and fed Garrett Billings seven seconds later to start Virginia on a 3-goal run.

Carroll scored two goals in the second quarter as the Cavaliers took an 8-2 lead to the locker room at halftime. After Andrew Kelleher scored the second goal for Vermont early in the second quarter, the Cavaliers tallied the next eight goals, as UVa’s lead grew to 14-2 early in the fourth quarter.

“I thought that we got a little bit better as the night went on,” said Starsia. “I don’t think we were particularly sharp around the edges of the game—the shooting, the finishing of opportunities. I thought we gave them some opportunities on defense because we were just a half step in anticipation behind.

“I also give our kids credit at the same time. I thought we played hard. I thought the effort was always there and that’s been indicative of us since the beginning of the season. I like that characteristic above all others.”

In the third quarter George Huguely, John Haldy, Max Pomper, and Stanwick all found the back of the net.

After Carroll and Chris Bocklet scored in the opening minutes of the final period, the teams traded goals the final seven minutes.

Goalie Adam Ghitelman continued his strong play with several spectacular saves on very tough shots. He finished with 10 saves in three quarters of action before turning the game over to the reserves.

“I thought Adam played very well,” Starsia said. “He’s continued to step up in every one of these games. This is a game where it could have been a lot uglier had he not made a couple saves for us at critical moments. His confidence continues to grow; you can just see it.”

Virginia remains at home Saturday and hosts Towson (1-3 overall) at Klöckner Stadium at 1 pm. Please note the ticket buying information below.

Notes on Saturday Baseball/Lacrosse
With both the top-ranked UVa men's lacrosse team facing Towson and the No. 18 baseball team hosting No. 14 Florida State this Saturday at 1 p.m., fans are encouraged to arrive early and to purchase their tickets in advance. Tickets are available online at VirginiaSports.com or may be ordered by calling 1-800-542-UVA1. Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the athletics ticket office in Bryant Hall, Monday – Friday from 9 a.m.–5 p.m.

Tickets may be purchased on Saturday at the entrance to Klöckner Stadium and Davenport Field. The events are ticketed separately. Reserved tickets for each game are $9 and general admission tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth, seniors, and UVa faculty and staff. The ticket booths will open at 11 a.m.

Parking is available for both games in the University Hall and John Paul Jones Arena parking lots.

Vermont 1-1-0-2—4 record: 2-1
Virginia 5-3-4-4—16 record: 8-0
att—1108

Scoring (G-A)— UVM: Geoff Worley 2-0, Parker Bunnell 1-1, Andrew Kelleher 1-1, Liam Thomas 0-1. UVa: Brian Carroll 3-1, Steele Stanwick 2-2, Gavin Gill 1-2, Steve Giannone 1-1, Danny Glading 1-1, Garrett Billings 1-0, Chris Bocklet 1-0, Peter Borror 1-0, Shamel Bratton 1-0, Colin Briggs 1-0, John Haldy 1-0, George Huguely 1-0, Max Pomper 1-0, Chad Gaudet 0-2, Nick Elsmo 0-1.

Goalie Summary— UVM: Justin Lubas 38:29 mins., 12 saves, 11 goals allowed; Alex Plavner 21:31, 7 svs., 5 GA. UVa: Adam Ghitelman 45 mins., 10 saves, 2 goals allowed; Mark Wade 11:08, 2 svs., 1 GA; Rob Eimer 2:22, 0 svs., 0 GA; Rob Fortunato 1:30, 1 sv., 1 GA

Shots: UVM —30, UVa —50
Ground Balls: UVM —37, UVa —40
Clearing: UVM —21x30, UVa —23x27
Faceoffs: UVM —8, UVa —14
Penalties: UVM —3-2:30, UVa —5-4:00
EMO: UVM —0x5, UVa —3x3

 

Rejuvenated Inglot, Cavs topple Monarchs, Bison
After much-needed break, unbeaten Virginia returns to form, drops just one point in back-to-back matches
Andrew Seidman, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Published: Wednesday, March 11 2009

Playing at the No. 2 singles slot for the first time this season, senior Dominic Inglot was at his best against Old Dominion yesterday, claiming a 6-3, 6-2 win. The month of February felt much longer than 28 days for the No. 1 Virginia men’s tennis team. Enervated by two intense weeks of tennis — seven matches in 14 days — senior Dominic Inglot began to feel the wear and tear of a grueling schedule, dropping his last two singles matches against Boise State and Virginia Tech players.

In his first match back after a much-needed week-long reprieve, though, Inglot played what Virginia coach Brian Boland called “the best match I’ve seen him play all year,” leading Virginia to a 6-1 victory yesterday against Old Dominion at the Sheridan Snyder Tennis Center. Virginia then made the short trip to the Boyd Tinsley Courts at the Boar’s Head Sports Club for another match against Howard and rolled to a 7-0 victory.

“Coming after national indoors, winning ... I was really feeling it a lot,” Inglot said. “I think when I came back, I was struggling in the practices a little bit and it started showing in the matches ... It showed I’m struggling a little bit there with tiredness and the confidence. I wasn’t getting confidence from the training.”

Inglot, however, rebounded to defeat Old Dominion’s sophomore No. 106 Tobias Fanselow at the No. 2 singles slot.

“We took a break with Spring Break and I feel like the whole team feels rejuvenated,” Inglot said.

The resurgence for the Cavaliers (17-0, 3-0 ACC) began at the No. 2 doubles slot, which features the No. 23-ranked team of Inglot and sophomore Michael Shabaz. The pair held a 5-4 lead when Shabaz fired a serve for one of several aces on the day. The point set the tone for the rest of the match, as the tandem swept the next three games to win 8-4.

“Doubles went really well,” Shabaz said. “I felt like me and [Inglot] really clicked today. He was serving well, we were volleying well, returning well. I thought we were pretty good in all phases; when we put our first serves in, they’re big enough that we can really control the point.”

Junior Lee Singer and freshman Drew Courtney secured the doubles point for the Cavaliers against Old Dominion (13-9) with an 8-3 triumph against junior Yakov Diskin and sophomore Alex Funkhouser.

The team then carried its momentum into singles, starting with Inglot’s victory against Fanselow. Inglot said his immediate success in the first outdoor affair of the season might be attributed to an increased outdoor training routine.

“In the past I haven’t been looking forward to [outdoors] because indoors is usually my strength,” Inglot said. “But this year I’m really looking forward to the outdoors — we did some great training before this match and it shows everyone’s playing really good tennis.”
Inglot said his newfound enthusiasm for outdoor play arose because of his increasing comfort with his serve.

“I’ve always been a lot reliant on my serve,” Inglot said. “And sometimes when my serve came back I felt like uh-oh — a little bit of panic ... I didn’t really enjoy playing from the back, but now I’ve really worked with the coaches on that and now I’m really happy playing from the back.”

No. 16 Shabaz continued the Cavaliers’ winning trend with a 7-6, 6-4 victory against sophomore Matt Fawcett. Though Shabaz needed only two sets to clinch the singles point, the match did not conclude without controversy. In the first set point, there was a dispute about whether the ball hit in-bounds.

“I thought the ball was in,” Shabaz said. “It’s kind of frustrating but I guess you just gotta put it away and keep playing.”

Although he won the match, Shabaz credited his opponent for the tough play.

Fawcett “had a good serve,” Shabaz said. “When he got his first serve in it was tough to deal with it because he took the first strike of the point. He played well and it was a pretty good match.”

The remaining singles contests in the lower spots were less competitive, though, as freshman Steven Eelkman Rooda and Courtney each posted 6-3, 6-0 wins at the No. 5 and No. 6 singles slots, respectively. Junior Houston Barrick rounded out the Virginia victory with a 6-4, 6-3 win at the No. 4 position against Diskin.

The team followed up its triumph against Old Dominion by cruising against Howard. Numerous players who generally see little court time in matches saw playing time, winning each doubles match by at least four games and claiming every singles match in straight sets.

Boland attributes the team’s strong performance throughout the day to the team’s rest and the arrival of March. Virginia will try to sustain its energy this weekend when the team heads to Texas to play No. 12 Baylor and No. 10 Texas.

The break “was absolutely essential considering how tired we were at the end of the last match against Virginia Tech,” Boland said. “We had an opportunity to rest and regroup mentally and physically and had four excellent days of practice. We’re in a really good situation.”


Notes

Sophomore Sanam Singh lost for the first time in singles 4-6, 7-6, 10-7 ... Inglot started in No. 2 singles for the first time this season after playing No. 1 previously this season ... The No. 2-ranked doubles tandem of Barrick and Singh lost for only the second time this season, falling 8-5 to No. 53 Seleznev/Fanselow ... Freshmen David Nguyen and Reese Milner each won their singles matches 6-0, 6-1.

 

Gosselin’s blast keys UVa win
By Jay Jenkins
Published: March 11, 2009

Phil Gosselin has this faint memory of hitting a grand slam in high school.

The particulars are somewhat of a mystery. That no longer matters.

On Tuesday, Virginia’s second baseman hit the latest bases-clearing home run in his career as the 18th-ranked Cavaliers crushed Navy 17-1 at Davenport Field.

Gosselin’s second homer of the season was one of team’s 23 hits in a victory over the Midshipmen that propelled the Cavaliers to 13-0 overall.

“Hitting a baseball is a hard thing to do, and I think our players continue to have the right approach at the plate and a good plan. That is what is important,” Virginia coach Brian O’Connor said. “Some days the hits are going to fall and some days they are not. Right now there are a lot of them coming our way.”

Coming off a three-game road sweep over Wake Forest that included 47 runs and 60 hits, Virginia broke the contest open in the fourth inning as it chased Navy starter Jonathan Berkowitz from the game.

Berkowitz (0-2) was pulled right after he allowed the grand slam to Gosselin, which made it 6-0.

“He came with a lot of sliders and I kept fouling them off,” said Gosselin of his fourth career homer. “I was on the pitches pretty good, but I just kept fouling them away. He tried to come in and sneak a fastball by me inside and I put a good swing on it.”

Gosselin, who opened the season hitless in his first 16 at-bats, finished the game with two hits and raised his batting average to .333 (17 for 51).

“He is swinging the bat like we thought he was capable of and he is going to be an important hitter in our lineup as he will bat second or third depending on whether we face a righty or a lefty,” O’Connor said. “I have always thought that he could hit and he is going to continue to hit for us.”

After a six-run fourth inning gave the Cavaliers an 8-0 lead, the offense added five runs in the fifth, another in the seventh and three more in the eighth after O’Connor emptied his bench.

Virginia starter Jeff Lorick earned the win on the mound, allowing three hits and an earned run over six innings. Lorick, making his third start, improved to 2-0 on the season.

The Cavaliers will host VMI today at 4 p.m. O’Connor said he plans to start sophomore RHP Tyler Wilson on the mound.