UVa tops UNC for ACC title
By Whitelaw Reid / wreid@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
April 30, 2007

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - There’s nothing sweeter than winning your conference tournament.

Unless of course you win the tournament against an archrival that embarrassed you earlier in the season.

And, you do it on their home turf.

The Virginia women’s lacrosse team accomplished all of this on Sunday afternoon. Fourth-seeded UVa pounded third-seeded North Carolina, 12-6, in the ACC Tournament final at Fetzer Field.

“This is very, very sweet,” said senior Kate Breslin. “It feels very, very good.”

With the victory, Virginia likely secured home-field advantage through the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament that kicks of May 13.

“It was just a great, outstanding effort on the part of Virginia lacrosse against a very good Carolina team,” said Virginia coach Julie Myers. “There was not a weakness that we showed out on the field today, which is something I’m very proud of.”

UNC coach Jenny Levy concurred.

“Julie and her staff did a great job,” she said. “They played a flawless game in a lot of ways.”

UVa (16-3) was led on offense by Brittany Kalkstein’s three goals. Ashley McCulloch, Megan Havrilla, Kate Breslin and Megan O’Malley had two apiece.

But the story of the game was Virginia’s defense, which was anchored splendidly by goalie Kendall McBrearty. The junior finished with 12 saves and was named tournament MVP.

Time and time again, McBrearty shunned North Carolina shooters from point-blank range.

“I was always moving and telling myself that shots could be coming from anywhere,” said McBrearty, who was mobbed by jubilant teammates when the final buzzer sounded. “At the beginning of the game, our goalie coach [Heather Dow] emphasized that they would be shooting from anywhere and that you just have to be ready. That really sunk in mind.”

Last month, North Carolina beat Virginia, 16-7, at Fetzer Field. Heading into Sunday’s rematch, Virginia players said they believed that they could defeat UNC. From the opening draw, UVa definitely appeared confident.

In the first half, the Cavaliers were able to dictate tempo, thanks to their dominance on draw controls (they won 10 of 13).

Using a deliberate offensive approach, the Cavs jumped out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Havrilla and O’Malley.

“We knew that Carolina was going to shoot a lot and we wanted to try and limit some of their shots and take some of the pressure off of our defense,” said Myers, when asked about her strategy to slow the game down. “Our attackers were in the flow and I didn’t think we were risking a lot by being patient. We were still getting good looks at the end of our possessions.

“I think that [strategy] kind of messes with a really good team. When their attackers don’t have the ball, it’s really hard to snap out of that feeling of, ‘I need to get the ball and score right away.’”

North Carolina was able to tie the game, but then Virginia scored three straight goals to take a 5-2 lead.

Due to the large discrepancy in time of possession - thanks to their success on the draws - the Cavaliers seemed to have the Tar Heels on the ropes. They could not pull away, however, because of six first-half turnovers.

The Tar Heels closed to 5-4 on a goal by Christina Juras before Virginia scored twice more to take a 7-5 lead into the locker room. The final goal of the half - by McCulloch - came with just 17 seconds remaining after the Cavs did an excellent job of milking the clock and playing for the last shot.

“I think that really made a statement for us going into halftime,” Myers said. “It was somewhat of a broken play. She had three defenders on her who were right in position, but she still scored the goal. At that point, I was like, ‘This is a good day for Ash.’”

A very good day, in fact. Playing with a broken finger that she sustained in the semifinal win over Maryland, McCulloch set a tournament record with seven assists.

“We talked before the game how anyone can beat anyone on any given day,” McCulloch said. “I think everyone came out ready to play and gave it their all.”

Early in the second half, North Carolina (15-4) pulled to 8-6 on a goal by Juras. However, Virginia took command from there, scoring four unanswered goals and continuing its stingy defense.

“The defense and Kendall was a huge reason why we were able to win this game,” Breslin said. “I think we tried to limit the touches of their better players and made them take some tough-angle shots. When they did, Kendall made the saves.”

Ground balls

North Carolina out-shot Virginia, 32-22, and held a 17-14 edge in ground balls, but UVa won 14 of 20 draw controls. … Six players from Virginia made the 12-player all-tournament team. They were McBrearty (MVP), McCullough, Breslin, Brittany Kalkstein, Blair Weymouth and Megan Havrilla.

 

Cavs fall to Devils in ACC final
By Josh Herwitt / Special to The Daily Progress
April 30, 2007

DURHAM, N.C. - Virginia coach Dom Starsia hoped that things would be different if the Cavaliers had an opportunity to play second-ranked Duke for a second time this season.

And if the third-ranked Cavaliers - who fell to the Blue Devils just over two weeks ago during the regular season - had any ideas of capturing a second straight ACC championship, Starsia knew it would have to come against the North Carolina school on its home turf.

The veteran coach got his chance Sunday afternoon at Koskinen Stadium, but the defending national champions couldn’t find enough ways to stop Tewaaraton Trophy candidate Matt Danowski and Duke’s quick-strike offense before eventually suffering a 12-9 defeat in the ACC Tournament final.

“I thought it was a great game up and down the field,” said Starsia. “You go back and examine every little thing so closely and it’s a goal here and there.”

After a first half dominated by defense from both sides, the third period saw Duke pick up the pace and take control of the game, running out to a 8-4 lead at 4 minutes, 4 seconds remaining on five straight goals to start the second half.

Mike Catalino was responsible for two goals during the stretch, opening up the offense for other Blue Devils to get involved, including Max Quinzani and Ned Crotty.

“The game got away from us a little bit in the third quarter,” Starsia added. “They were a little sharper than we were shooting the ball, and we had a number of opportunities we didn’t cash in on.”

With Virginia needing to stop the bleeding rather quickly, the Cavaliers went back to their bread and butter in junior attack Ben Rubeor, who beat Dan Loftus to cut Duke’s lead to 8-5 with 3:24 remaining in the third quarter.

Rubeor led the Cavaliers with five points on three goals and two assists, while sophomore attack Garrett Billings gave Virginia (12-3) one last hope with a goal off a feed from Danny Glading that sliced the margin to two at 1:42 in the third period.

But that was the closest Virginia would get, as Duke rode the offense of Danowski and Greer, who finished the contest with three goals and All-Tournament honors.

“We took a step in the right direction today,” said Rubeor, despite the loss. “We’ll continue to improve and get much better.”

Billings got the Cavaliers off to a fast start in the opening minutes of the game, netting goals at 9:52 and 7:15 in the first period to give Virginia an early 2-0 advantage.

Duke answered just over a minute later, as Danowski shook his defender and fired a shot past Kip Turner to cut Virginia’s lead to just one.

After Fred Krom tied the score at 2 at 1:27, Danowski was back at it once again, beating the defense and striking the back of the goal with three ticks left in the first quarter of play to put Duke ahead by one.

Danowski, who was named MVP of the ACC Tournament following the game, finished with three goals and an assist for Duke, which won its first ACC Tournament crown since 2002.

While Duke held a slight lead after the first quarter of play, the second period belonged to Virginia, as Rubeor found himself all alone on the right side of the zone for a shot into the right corner of the goal that tied the score at 3.

Duke goaltender Dan Loftus made it difficult for the Cavaliers all game long, though, and Virginia found itself without another goal until Billings hit Jack Riley for an open look at the net and a 4-3 lead heading into halftime.

“I was proud really of the effort by my team overall,” Starsia said. “It’s probably as well as we’ve played in some period of time. I think it’s a team that’s going to continue to get better.”

 

Devils return to greatness
Duke lacrosse works on building a new legacy by winning ACC title
Edward G. Robinson III, Staff Writer

DURHAM - Duke men's lacrosse goalie Dan Loftus broke his cardinal rule when he gave up a goal to Virginia's Garrett Billings five minutes into the first period on Sunday. He was supposed to make the first save and provide good mojo for the rest of the day.
Luckily, the senior's second cardinal rule calls for remaining calm, taking things as they come and forgetting mistakes.

"I've learned to wipe the slate clean and just start from zero," he said.

Anchored by his defensive principals, Loftus overlooked another Billings goal two minutes later, then turned his day around and eventually played a pivotal role in the Blue Devils' 12-9 victory over the Cavaliers in the finals of the ACC championship at Koskinen Stadium.

With his team trailing 4-3 entering the third quarter, Loftus made eight of his 14 saves in the second half, shielding the Devils' net from Virginia's laser-sharp attack.

"He made a few saves that were just ridiculous," said Duke senior co-captain Matt Danowski, who was named the tournament's most valuable player.

Solid on defense, the second-ranked Devils (13-2) erupted on offense, scoring seven goals in the third quarter, including five straight over a seven-minute period that secured a 10-7 lead that they would ride to the team's first conference championship since edging the Cavaliers (12-3) in the 2002 ACC title game.

Afterward, Duke lacrosse players hugged and hollered excitedly, although this victory, captured in front of 6,517 appreciative fans on a picture-perfect afternoon, lacked the emotional undertones others have had this season.

Regular-season games against Dartmouth on Feb. 24 and Virginia on April 14 were clearly more emotionally draining for players because of their connection to a legal case that had involved three former lacrosse players.

Earlier this month, the charges against those three lacrosse players were dropped, clearing them of accusations made by an escort service dancer who claimed she had been raped at a party hosted by members of the lacrosse team.

That news, delivered on April 11, came as sure relief to current team members, who, at this time last year, had their season canceled by the university in the midst of the controversy that ripped through Durham.

Sunday's game, players said, was about creating a new legacy, one tied to an impressive performance on the field.

Duke reached the final game of the 2005 NCAA Tournament and showcased itself as one of the nation's best. Two years later, the Devils are once again displaying their prodigious talents.

This was the second victory this season over the third-ranked Cavaliers, who won the NCAA Tournament last season and have vied for conference championships in five of the past six seasons.

In the semifinals on Friday, the Blue Devils defeated North Carolina 13-9.

An athletic team with a penchant for running, the Devils swarmed the Cavaliers in transition and poured on 33 shots. Danowski, the only player in the nation with 30 goals and 30 assists, scored three goals, while junior Zack Greer scored three and had three assists.

Sophomore Mike Catalino and freshman Max Quinzani added two goals apiece and further demonstrated Duke's depth.

"We're able to create offense a lot of different ways," Duke coach John Danowski said. "That's not unusual. That's by design."

It's also by design that Loftus finds players streaking down field as he did on several occasions Sunday. Those crisp passes led to goals.

"They send everybody," Virginia goalie Kip Turner said. "They're just good at getting behind you, at getting in passing lanes in transition. That makes them a dangerous team."

 

Snelling, Hamilton picked up late in 7th round
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
April 30, 2007

Time was running out on a streak that started in 1984.

There were only 12 picks left in this year’s NFL Draft, in fact, when two former Virginia players - running back Jason Snelling and cornerback Marcus Hamilton - were selected with back-to-back selections.

In the seventh round on Sunday, the Atlanta Falcons took Snelling with the 244th overall pick, and Hamilton was scooped up by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers minutes later, ensuring that Virginia had a player taken for the 24th straight year.

“It is important, I think, to show that we have talent at Virginia,” Hamilton said. “And even though some other guys didn’t get drafted, they have gone the free agent route and have had or will have success.”

Hamilton was obviously alluding to several of his former teammates who inked free agent contracts - defensive lineman Keenan Carter, tight end/wideout Fontel Mines and wide receiver Deyon Williams signed with the Washington Redskins and the Chicago Bears inked former quarterback Christian Olsen, reuniting him with his brother, Greg, a first-round selection on Saturday.

Several others, Hamilton said, were mulling over options Sunday night.

The lengthy two-day draft could have taken its toll on Hamilton and Snelling, they said, without the influence of family and friends.

Snelling said he watched the draft at his brother’s house in Virginia Beach with his girlfriend and his parents.

“When you sit around and watch those things it can be very nerve-racking, which it was, but when it finally came, I was real ecstatic,” said Snelling, who arrives in Atlanta just weeks after UVa graduates Matt Schaub (Texans) and Patrick Kerney (Seahawks) departed. “It was a happy moment for me and my family. I was real happy to get the opportunity to get to play at that next level with the Falcons.”

Snelling was forced to watch seven other fullbacks, the position he is likely slotted at, get selected prior to hearing his name.

“As a competitor, you always compare yourself to other people so it kind of hits you in the gut a little bit, but I knew all the guys that were picked from meeting them at the [NFL] Combine so you can’t be too mad,” Snelling said. “It all worked out for me in the end and I’m happy for those guys, too.”

The Falcons have two fullbacks, Ovie Mughelli and Corey McIntyre, on their roster.

Hamilton, who joins former Cavalier Ronde Barber in Tampa Bay’s secondary, killed time on Sunday by going to see “Fracture” with his girlfriend at a movie theater near his parents’ home in Centreville.

“I am happy that the Lord blessed with the opportunity to play at the next level and that I was able to be drafted,” Hamilton said. “That’s something that very few people get the opportunity to do and I am just truly thankful for the opportunity.”

While thoughts of signing as a free agent were entering his mind as the seventh round progressed, Hamilton was elated that the Buccaneers used a selection to guarantee his services in a mini-camp that gets underway this weekend.

“For me, if it had been free agency, that is what I would have done,” Hamilton said. “But everybody has a different path to the league and it felt great to have my name called and for them to want me regardless of what round that I went in.”

Also, UMass wide receiver Brandon London, who played at Albemarle and Fork Union, inked a free agent deal with the New York Giants. London’s father, Mike, is Virginia’s defensive coordinator.

 

Virginia sweeps Maryland
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
April 30, 2007

Patrick Wingfield helped one of his teammates set a program record and left another waiting to make history on a grander stage.

Thanks in part to Wingfield’s one-out, two-run single in the bottom of the eighth inning, third-ranked Virginia held on for a 4-0 victory over Maryland at a sold-out Davenport Field. The win secured the Cavaliers’ first series weekend sweep in 28 days and their 15th consecutive win over the Terrapins (23-24, 7-17 ACC).

Virginia (37-10, 16-7) remained a half-game up on North Carolina in the ACC’s Coastal Division after the Tar Heels topped N.C. State, 7-5, on the road.

While the win gave Virginia starting pitcher Sean Doolittle a tie for the program record with 21 careers wins, it left Cavalier closer Casey Lambert still one save shy of the ACC record.

Playfully, Wingfield apologized to Lambert before the southpaw took the mound at the start of the ninth inning.

“He handed me the ball and said, ‘I’m sorry, I should have just hit a sac fly,’” said Lambert, who remains tied with former UNC pitcher Thad Chrisman with 41 career saves. “That was the feeling that I had, too, but Wingfield had a good day and he was seeing the ball well up there. We will take whatever we can get.”

Early in the contest, Doolittle and Maryland starter Ryan Moorer battled frame-for-frame, keeping the game scoreless through five innings.

Doolittle, who improved to 7-3 on the season, had some help from Virginia left fielder Brandon Guyer in the fifth.

After giving up a leadoff double to catcher Chad Durakis, Maryland’s Nick Jowers pulled a 2-1 offering that sent Guyer scrambling backward to the blue wall in left. Without looking at the ground and as he approached the wooden wall, Guyer leaped high into the air and brought back a would-be homer.

“I thought it was out at first,” Guyer said. “I just kept running … and maybe the wind stopped it. I was going to catch that no matter what.”

A play that Virginia coach Brian O’Connor said it was easily the “best of the game” kept the game scoreless.

“If [Guyer] doesn’t make that catch it changes the complexion of the ball game,” O’Connor said. “Brandon is fearless, and it isn’t the first time that he made a catch like that. That was a big-time play.”

Virginia finally solved Moorer (3-4) in the sixth - sophomore David Adams drove in Guyer from second on a deep triple that bounced off the right-field wall and later scored on an RBI single by Wingfield, who finished with three hits.

That was ample run support for Doolittle (6 IP, 4 H, 2 BB, 4 SO) and reliever Andrew Carraway (2 IP, 0 H, 2 SO), who bridged the gap to Lambert in the ninth.

It appeared that Lambert would be in a save situation until the bottom of the eighth when Guyer and Adams hit back-to-back singles and advanced 90 feet on a sacrifice bunt by UVa catcher Beau Seabury.

“Beau said he considered bunting it right back to the pitcher,” Lambert joked, “but he knew he wasn’t actually going to follow through with that plan.”

Lambert could only watch and shake his head in disbelief from Virginia’s bullpen as Wingfield delivered a bouncing single up the middle off Maryland reliever Brett Cecil, plating Adams and Guyer.

“We can’t score in the eighth every game,” Lambert chuckled. “The record will come eventually.”

Doolittle, who also added a pair of singles, moved into a four-way tie with three former Cavalier pitchers - Tim Burcham, Seth Greisinger and Joe Koshansky - for a record that he admits will likely be shattered Virginia sophomore Jacob Thompson, who boasts 20 career wins.

“It wasn’t something that I thought about,” Doolittle said. “I don’t really know how long that [record] is going to stand. [Thompson] might even get it this year. There might be a five-way tie coming up here in two weeks. It is a really cool honor.”

O’Connor said he was excited that Doolittle, who pitched primarily as a reliever as a rookie, could join a select list of hurlers in the Cavaliers’ record-tying ninth shutout of the season.

“You can’t ask anything more out of Sean Doolittle than what he has given us in three years,” the skipper said. “To do everything he has done to going from closer to starter to hitting in the middle of our lineup … the problem with a guy like that is that expectations are so high.

“Everybody thinks he should be hitting .390 and hitting 15 home runs. He is just a great player and he has a lot of weight on his shoulders and he responded well today.”

Before taking a lengthy exam break, Virginia will host Virginia Commonwealth on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

 

Blue Devils claim ACC championship
The Herald-Sun/Mark Dolejs
BY BRYAN STRICKLAND : The Herald-Sun
bstrickland@heraldsun.com
Apr 29, 2007 : 10:44 pm ET

For some who became familiar with Duke lacrosse only through the news events of the past year, harsh headlines will shape what they see as the program's enduring legacy.

But Sunday afternoon, the Blue Devils continued to shape a more endearing legacy.

A year after Duke wasn't allowed to compete in postseason play, the Blue Devils claimed the first postseason prize for any of the players on the roster, running past Virginia 12-9 to capture the ACC Tournament title in front of 6,517 fans at Koskinen Stadium.

"With everything this team has been through, it's awesome to come out here and finally get something we can put our name to," said junior attackman Zack Greer, who scored three goals and matched a career high with three assists in the victory. "And to do it in front of our home crowd, that makes it that much more special.

"We were going home after exams last year, but now we've got hopefully at least a couple of more weeks that we can keep playing."

Sunday's victory was indeed a milestone moment, with players sprinting onto the field as the final horn sounded and acting like little kids well after the game was complete -- whether they were jumping on each others' backs or jumping on the top of the pile trying to get in the celebratory championship photo.

But this isn't the end of the line. The Blue Devils (13-2), ranked second nationally, have won eight games in a row and will be among the favorites when the NCAA Tournament pairings are announced Sunday.

"It's not the end-all, be-all for us, but it is a great day for us," co-captain Matt Danowski said after he scored three goals to earn tournament MVP honors and help Duke claim its first ACC crown since 2002. "For us as seniors, we've talked about leaving a legacy here. This is the first thing that we can leave with our name, the 2007 ACC championship.

"This is the first step in the goals that we set for ourselves back in August. It's just a great day and another testament to the guys on this team and just how we stuck together through this whole thing and kept our noses clean and just kept going and stayed with it.

"Today is one of those payoffs."

Virginia (12-3), ranked third and the reigning NCAA champion, also will be among the tourney favorites. Cavaliers coach Dom Starsia said after the game that his team played at a high level Sunday, a true testament to Duke's level of play right now.

Halfway through Sunday's game, it was anybody's game. But after the Blue Devils mustered three first-quarter goals and then didn't score at all in the second quarter or for nearly four minutes in the third quarter, Duke erupted for seven goals in 11 minutes to turn what had been a 4-3 deficit into a 10-7 lead heading to the final quarter.

"At halftime, although we were down by a goal, we were all pretty calm and just said, 'Listen, it's going to happen. Just keep playing,' " first-year Duke coach John Danowski said. "We were able to generate offense in a lot of different ways, but that's not unusual. That's by design. That's not an accident."

The Blue Devils did much of their damage with athletic offensive moves set up by aggressive defensive maneuvers. Virginia was successful on 17 of 20 clears Sunday, but the three failures came in the pivotal third quarter, when the Cavaliers turned the ball over six times and lost 14 of 23 ground balls -- their worst quarter in those categories.

"The game got away from us a little bit in the third quarter," said Starsia, whose Cavaliers gave up the most goals they had allowed in a game this season. "We failed to clear a couple of times, and they just turned those into offensive opportunities that they almost always cash in on. They're exceptionally good close to the cage."

Duke sophomore Mike Catalino stopped a 19-minute drought and started the 11-minute onslaught at the same time to tie the score, then just 28 seconds later freshman Max Quinzani gave Duke the lead for good at 5-4. Four minutes passed before Duke's next goal, but then the Blue Devils put up five in about six minutes to lead 10-7: two for Greer, including one with just six seconds left in the quarter; a third goal for Danowski to go with a pair he had in the first quarter that included a buzzer-beater; a second goal for Catalino for the first time in his career; and the third goal of the tournament for sophomore Ned Crotty.

"It was just chaotic out there," Greer said. "We were just playing. You're just out there having fun, and you don't even think about it. It's just awesome."

In the fourth quarter, Duke's defense sealed the victory. Virginia pulled within 10-8 on Ben Rubeor's third goal, but the Cavaliers couldn't get closer despite two extra-man opportunities thanks to solid defense and the goaltending of senior Dan Loftus, who had 14 saves.

"It's an old clichâ??©," Coach Danowski said, "but defense wins championships. If we can defend, we can compete with everybody."

The Blue Devils will get the chance to prove that again in the 16-team NCAA Tournament, a quest that will begin with a home game either May 12 or 13. Following Sunday's victory, Coach Danowski thanked the crowd that totaled more than 13,000 over two dates, including more than 1,100 students.

"We are just delighted with the response that we've gotten from them and how everyone has taken to this team and supported them," he said. "Today was just a heck of a Division I event."



 

With 12 picks remaining in the NFL draft, there was a growing likelihood that for the first time since 1983, Virginia would not have a player selected.
Round 7 is lucky for UVa's Jason Snelling, Marcus Hamilton.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129

With 12 picks remaining in the NFL draft, there was a growing likelihood that for the first time since 1983, Virginia would not have a player selected.

Then, in a manner of minutes, two UVa players were picked.

Running back Jason Snelling and cornerback Marcus Hamilton were chosen on consecutive picks in the seventh round.

Snelling went to Atlanta with the 244th pick and Hamilton went to Tampa Bay with the 245th pick.

"It was a long day," Snelling said, "but I'm completely happy with the way things turned out."

Snelling played fullback for most of his career before moving to tailback as a fifth-year senior, when he rushed for a team-high 772 yards and had 29 receptions.

"I was the only running back they took," Snelling said. "Of course, they've got a new coach [Bobby Petrino], so it's hard to say how they will use the fullback. The running backs coach said to be prepared for either spot.

The Falcons featured Warrick Dunn (5-foot-9, 180 pounds) and Jerious Norwood (6-0, 203) as their running backs last season, but Snelling (5-11, 232) could provide an option in short-yardage situations.

In Tampa Bay, Hamilton will be joining Ronde Barber, a fellow Virginia graduate who is one of the elite cornerbacks in the NFL.

"That's the first thing I thought of," Hamilton said.

"We finished our careers with the same number of interceptions [15]. Hopefully, we'll be able to connect and I'll have an opportunity to learn from one of the best."

Hamilton was watching the final round of the draft and had just seen Snelling's name flash across the television screen when a Buccaneers official called him.

There's no assurance that a seventh-round pick will survive the final cut, but Snelling and Hamilton can always say they were drafted.

"Exactly," Hamilton said. "That was one of my goals when I got here."