Lax fans come to Klockner in droves
By Jerry Ratcliffe
Published: April 12, 2008

When Dom Starsia walked into Klockner Stadium for early warmups on April 3, the Virginia coach was shocked at what he found.
Between 1,500 and 2,000 fans had already arrived and more were pouring through the gates — quite uncommon for a lacrosse crowd, which is generally a late-arriving group. Considering it was Easter weekend, many students had gone home and it was logical that a lot of the sport’s fans wouldn’t be making the trip. Starsia could hardly believe his eyes.
Lacrosse, which has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years, has become a real hit in Charlottesville. A school-record crowd of 7,579 showed up for Virginia’s home victory over Johns Hopkins that day.
However, that record is expected to fall tonight when No. 3 UVa hosts No. 2 Duke at Klockner at 6 p.m.
There’s one catch.
UVa officials felt it was necessary to put a cap on the number of fans who can see the game. The cutoff is 8,000.
So, should you show up tonight and are Mr. 8,001, then you’re out of luck.
This is probably one of those good news/bad news deals. The good news is there likely will be 8,000 devout lacrosse fans at Klockner tonight. The bad news is there won’t be more, considerably more.
Jon Oliver, UVa’s executive associate director of athletics, said this week that the department wanted to insure the best possible game day experience for fans, enabling everyone in the stadium to be able to see the game. More than 8,000 jammed into every nook and cranny of the place would likely take away the positive experience he was talking about.
Starsia noticed a sea change in Klockner crowds during soccer season when 7,906 fans showed up for UVa’s game against Virginia Tech. With surprising numbers showing up for that sport and lacrosse, it may change the school’s thinking.
“I think we’ve turned a little page up here for soccer and lacrosse if it continues to grow,” Starsia said. “Maybe in the future, if this is a trend that’s going to continue, we may need to consider going back to Scott Stadium for a couple of games a year. That’s something we may have to talk about after the season, because we don’t want people to come here and can’t get into the games.”
More than 4,000 advance sales tickets were gone by lunchtime on Friday, which is about 3,900 more than usual.
Yes, tonight’s game is that big.
Not so much in terms of rankings, NCAA tournament seedings, or even matchups for the upcoming ACC tournament (which be held in Charlottesville), but for other reasons.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt about the Duke game being special,” Starsia said. “The result of the game is probably the least important part. It may be strange to hear me say that, but I like the fact that we have the luxury of going in and just playing our best game.”
There are plenty of subplots, such as former Duke player Peter Lamade now playing for the Wahoos and facing his old teammates. All that’s fine for sportswriters and fans, but what Starsia wants is to see his team play its best for 60 minutes and let the chips fall where they may.
It may take UVa’s best performance in order to beat the Blue Devils, something the Cavaliers haven’t done since 2004. Starsia doesn’t think his team has played its best lacrosse to date, and if it does tonight, then it bodes well for the rest of the season.
With the ACC tournament here, should UVa play its cards correctly, it could spend most of May on its home turf, which wouldn’t exactly hurt the Cavaliers’ chances of making it to Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., for the NCAA Championships.
Beating Carolina in a dramatic comeback last weekend had given UVa the luxury of holding nothing back tonight. The Cavs can pin back their collective ears and go sic ’em.
“Winning a conference game like that on the road, in the rain, a team that had hammered Hopkins the week before was significant,” Starsia said. “Win a game like that and you’re very satisfied with a piece of it.”
However the game also afford the coach an opportunity to say, “Look, fellas, we need a more complete effort.”
Starsia believes his team could have buried Carolina much earlier than it turned out. If his team had lost, he would have looked more critically at not taking advantage of several edges, including something like a 55-36 differential in shots over the Tar Heels.
His team is playing with more confidence, so much in fact that Starsia noticed a calm in the Cavalier huddle after they had tied the game last weekend in Chapel Hill.
That is the kind of quiet confidence that wins big games and secures championships.
Starsia is hoping that carries over into a packed house tonight.


 

He’s everybody’s Bud
By Whitey Reid
Published: April 12, 2008

When Bud Petit returned to the Virginia lacrosse team this spring as a fifth-year senior, he had one goal - to accomplish something he hadn’t been able to do in his preceding four years on grounds.
Petit wanted more than anything to be UVa’s starting goalie.
The objective seemed pretty attainable.
Petit had served as the main backup to departed senior Kip Turner for the better part of two years. He had more experience than any of the other candidates for the position. And Petit was extremely well liked by his teammates.
However, about a week before Virginia opened up against Drexel, coach Dom Starsia gave Petit some bad news: freshman Adam Ghitelman had earned the starting assignment.
“I thought I was playing my best lacrosse, so it was frustrating,” Petit said, “because you think you’re at the top of your game and it’s still not good enough because [Ghitelman] was playing better.
“I came back [to Virginia] trying to be the starter, so it was kind of a buzz-kill at first, but I’m old enough and mature enough to know that it’s not about playing time. It’s just being part of the team.”
It’s that type of attitude that has endeared the
23-year-old Petit to teammates. It’s also the approach that has - at least temporarily - enabled him to take the position from Ghitelman.
This afternoon, Petit will make his second straight start when No. 3 Virginia hosts No. 2 Duke.
Talk to just about any UVa player and it quickly becomes obvious how much they enjoy playing with the affable Petit.
“I think he’s definitely one of the most charismatic players on the team,” said Virginia sophomore Ken Clausen. “He’s always ready to go and can get you fired up.
“Having him in goal brings an excitement to the field. He makes big saves and provides motivation to play at the level he’s at.”
That’s exactly what transpired in Chapel Hill last weekend. If it wasn’t for Petit’s play, Virginia never would have been able to come back from a late three-goal deficit to beat UNC in overtime.
The 6-foot-4 Petit finished with 13 saves. The win prevented Virginia (10-1, 1-1) from losing its first two ACC games and gave the squad some much-needed confidence heading into tonight’s game.
“If we play our best, it should be good enough to beat them,” said Petit, when asked about facing Duke (11-1, 2-0). “They’re not unbeatable. Everyone wants to [hype] them up, but we lost to them by one goal last year and we both return pretty much everyone. All the pressure’s on them I think.”
Pressure was what gave Petit gave a chance to start at UNC. Ghitelman played well in his 10 starts, but, at times, seemed overwhelmed.
With the freshman in goal, Virginia won its first nine games of the season. But after a 13-7 loss at Maryland on March 29, Starsia decided his team needed a spark.
Petit certainly provided that against the Tar Heels. Now the Midlothian native - who starred at the Collegiate School in Richmond - can’t let up if he wants to keep the job.
“I think it’s sort of day-to-day,” said Starsia, when asked about the starting goalie spot. “I don’t want Bud to be playing looking over his shoulder, but we have some good goalies in the program.
“We need to have championship goalie play whoever’s playing.”
Petit, a studio art major who is now attending graduate school, is known as a bit of a wild child. A of couple years ago, he engaged in a one-on-one practice duel with former UVa captain Conor Gill that players still talk about.
“We were yelling at each other back and forth,” Petit said, “and literally the whole team just stood there and watched.”
Petit is the first to admit he has a zany streak.
“There will be some days where I’m just out of control,” he said. “I’ll be like, ‘There’s nothing that doesn’t matter!’
“I think guys kind of like [that attitude]. It’s different. It’s not the normal quiet goalie like Tillman [Johnson] and Kip [Turner] were.”
Starsia seems to choose his words carefully when describing Petit’s personality.
“He’s an emotional, creative soul,” Starsia said. “I’ve had some very emotional meetings with him on more than one occasion.”
One of them occurred prior to Virginia’s championship season in 2006. Petit, a redshirt sophomore at the time, thought he had outplayed Turner and deserved to be the starter.
“I just said, ‘Kip is better. It’s not far apart, but he’s better,’” Starsia recalled.
Petit stormed out of Starsia’s office. He quit the team before returning a couple of days later.
Petit seems to have grown up a lot since then. Back in February, when Starsia informed him that he was choosing Ghitelman as his starter, Petit kept his cool.
“Before I got the whole thing came out of my mouth, he said, ‘[Ghitelman’s] really good, coach,’” Starsia said. “He had no problem with it and was very supportive.”
It’s the same kind of support Petit now receives from his teammates.
“Being a fifth-year senior, everyone knows what he’s been through,” Clausen said, “and it’s something everyone can learn from.”

The Petit File
Given name: Michael
Nicknames: Bud, Bean
Born: Chicago
Hometown: Richmond
Age: 23
Favorite movie: “A Bronx Tale”
Favorite music: 311
One thing people don’t know: “I was a studio art major.”

 

Virginia sews up crown
By Whitey Reid
Published: April 12, 2008

Friday was a beautiful, picturesque day at the Snyder Tennis Center. There was a nice-sized crowd. Virginia media relations man Steve Kirkland provided his usual NBA-style player introductions.
But something was missing.
The No. 1 Virginia men didn’t have their usual pep. UVa wound up beating No. 49 N.C. State, 5-2, to claim its fifth straight ACC regular-season championship, however, Cavalier coach Brian Boland didn’t seem very pleased about it.
Well after the match had been completed, Boland could be seen huddling with his team. There didn’t appear to be the usual post-match giddiness that has become a hallmark of this year’s undefeated squad.
“I would like to take the opportunity to tell the fans that they will see a much better effort on Sunday [against Wake Forest],” Boland said.
Virginia may have been affected by a flu bug that rifled through the team and didn’t allow some players to practice during the week, but Boland didn’t want to use that as an excuse.
“Give N.C. State credit,” Boland said. “They played a great match.”
Virginia (24-0, 10-0 ACC) swept doubles, but had to sweat a little bit for a change.
Somdev Devvarman and Treat Huey rallied from down an early break to top James McGee and Christian Welte 8-6 at No. 1 doubles. At the No. 2 position, Dominic Inglot and Michael Shabaz also came back from down a break to top Nick Cavaday and David Chermak 9-7. Lee Singer and Ted Angelinos completed the sweep with a 9-8 win over Jay Weinacker and Derek Stephens.
In singles, Devvarman, Huey, Michael Shabaz and Houston Barrick were victorious. Huey’s match was a lot closer than expected. He needed a third-set tiebreaker to dispose of Cavaday.
Barrick was in the lineup in place of Ted Angelinos, who along with Sanam Singh, were the two players most under the weather.
Inglot - who sat out last Sunday’s win over Duke with the flu - lost in straight sets to Weinacker.
Barrick turned in one of the day’s more impressive efforts. Utilizing a strong first serve, he beat Chermak, 6-0, 6-3. Barrick held serve the entire match.
“I think that was a huge difference,” Barrick said. “Usually I get broken once or twice. That’s the biggest key to my game. I hadn’t played a singles match in a while, so I was a little rusty at first, but once I got used to it, I settled in and played well.”
Boland is hoping his guys can bring the same kind of energy that Barrick did come Senior Day on Sunday.
“I think a lot will depend on us having a good practice [today] and feeling fresh,” Boland said.
“I know it’s hard for the guys. They’ve been playing through an imperfect situation, but we’ll be all right.”

 

Big shoes to fill, big foes to ponder
By Jay Jenkins
Published: April 12, 2008

When Virginia elected to honor No. 91 prior to the start of the final home game of 2007, the proverbial torch was passed.
As symbolic as the exit proved to be with the NFL draft looming, the post-Chris Long era begins today as the Cavaliers head into their annual spring festival at Scott Stadium at 2 p.m. looking for their newest crop of stars.
The same, of course, could have been said following campaigns that saw Virginia coach Al Groh lose former quarterbacks Matt Schaub and Marques Hagans, offensive lineman D’Brickashaw Ferguson and even kicker Connor Hughes to the professional ranks.
For Groh and UVa, life moves on - and an impending date with Southern Cal inches closer.
“We say about players when we’ve gotta move on, we’ve used the phrase, ‘Next man up,’” Groh said. “And I guess it’s, ‘Next season up.’
“It’s one of the realities of coaching teams and, in particular, in the college level where the timeframe is short.”
Yes, Long is an afterthought, but Virginia is also planning to enter a campaign without countless others, including quarterback Jameel Sewell, defensive end Jeffrey Fitzgerald and offensive guard Branden Albert for myriad explainable - and even undisclosed - reasons.
“There are no long-term veterans,” Groh said. “It’s just kind of the way of life. It’s the same as when Heath [Miller] moved on and Brick moved on and [Brad] Butler moved on.
“You just set your mind to moving on with the next guys and seeing what you can do with this current group of players.”
Due to the defections and numerous offseason surgeries, today’s event will not mirror an actual game with the players split into two separate teams.
“We will have to make our plans, but whatever we decide on it’s not going to be a game-type format,” Groh said. “We don’t have enough depth at a couple of positions due to players sitting out as a result of injury and so forth.
“We don’t have enough depth to divide them up so that only 50 percent of them are available on each side of the ball, so we will do it in a scrimmage situation.”
Regardless of the format, Virginia’s players said they are eager to play in front of the fans inside the stadium.
“Any time you get to line up against somebody else and you get to put on the blue and orange, it gets your blood flowing,” said senior quarterback Scott Deke. “It’s fun to go out and compete. It’s a chance for all of us to show what we’ve been working hard for because football is a 365-day a year gig.”
Having a positive performance today is important, Deke said, with USC headed to Charlottesville in four months.
“That’s just exciting. Anytime you get to play a team that’s, what, 70-8 in the 2000’s, it is a chance to put yourself on the map,” he said. “It’s a tough team and we are going to have to do a lot of hard work to make sure we are ready for those guys, and that’s why we are at out here this spring working hard.
“It takes time for a team to come together and you lose guys every year, but people come back and guys like [tailback] Cedric Peerman and [tight end] John Phillips and [linebacker] Clint Sintim have really stepped up and they are doing a great job. They are trying to teach the younger guys the Wahoo way.”

Healthy bodies are in short supply for Orange-Blue event
Saturday, Apr 12, 2008 - 12:06 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The biggest game in this town today? That would be the ACC men's lacrosse showdown between third-ranked Virginia and second-ranked Duke at Klockner Stadium, where a capacity crowd of 8,000 is expected.

Long before that game's 6 p.m. start, however, another sporting event of interest to U.Va. fans -- the spring football game -- will be held at Scott Stadium.

In years when he's had enough healthy players, Cavaliers coach Al Groh has split his roster into two teams for a traditional Orange vs. Blue game.

This isn't one of those years. Players such as Eugene Monroe (shoulder), Sean Gottschalk (shoulder), John Bivens (knee) and Patrick Slebonick (shoulder) are recovering from injuries, and so today's 2 p.m. scrimmage will match the offense against the defense in various game situations.

And that, Groh said, "actually will allow some of the players to perform better, because the units on offense and defense will be kept intact, rather than split up."

The recipients of the Rock Weir Awards, given each spring to the team's most improved players, will be announced before today's game. So will U.Va.'s captains for 2008. The 2007 captains -- offensive guard Branden Albert, tight end Tom Santi and defensive end Chris Long -- are NFL-bound, and they left a leadership void that the next generation of Cavaliers must fill.

Among those who "have really stepped to the front," Groh said, are tight end John Phillips, linebackers Clint Sintim and Antonio Appleby, cornerback Vic Hall and tailback Cedric Peerman.

"We have quite a few players who are going to be good leaders on this team next year whether they're designated as captains or not," Groh said.

This time last year, Jameel Sewell was coming off wrist surgery, but there was no question that, if healthy, the Hermitage High graduater would be Virginia's No. 1 quarterback. Sewell started every game last season and helped U.Va. to a 9-4 finish, but he was placed on academic suspension in January and isn't enrolled at U.Va. this semester.

In his absence, snaps this spring have been divided among three quarterbacks: Peter Lalich, Scott Deke and Marc Verica. Lalich hasn't been named the starter, but the former West Springfield High star was Sewell's understudy as a true freshman last season and is expected to win the No. 1 job this year, if he hasn't already.

Ideally for U.Va., Lalich would have been redshirted last season. But concerns about Sewell's health and his ability to stay eligible academically convinced U.Va.'s coaches that playing Lalich was the best option.

In eight games, Lalich completed 35 of 61 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns. He threw one interception. Lalich should be a better quarterback this season for that experience.

"He says he feels so much further ahead in his first spring practice than he ever would have felt if he'd not been involved with game preparation and amount (of playing time) he got," Groh said.

Questions abound about Groh's eighth team at his alma mater, where his record as head coach is 51-37. In addition to Albert, Santi, Sewell and Long, starters gone include cornerback Chris Cook, center Jordy Lipsey, offensive guard Ian-Yates Cunningham, safety Nate Lyles, tight end Jonathan Stupar and kicker Chris Gould.

Unlike Long, Gould was not a consensus All-American. He wasn't an all-ACC selection, for that matter. But he made 16 of 20 field goals and delivered repeatedly under pressure. The inconsistency of his probable successor, freshman Chris Hinkebein, concerns the coaching staff.

"Obviously Chris Long will be tremendously missed," Groh said, "but we're acutely aware of the impact Chris Gould had on the team."



 

Cavs welcome back injured pair
Peerman, Ogletree on the comeback trail
Date published: 4/12/2008
By TAFT COGHILL JR.
CHARLOTTESVILLE

--There's never a good time for a season-ending injury, but the timing couldn't have been much worse for two Virginia football players.

Running back Cedric Peerman suffered a torn ligament and a dislocated bone in his right foot against Middle Tennessee State last season.

He was leading the Atlantic Coast Conference in rushing at the time.

Wide receiver Kevin Ogletree was coming off a career-best season last spring when he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

Both Peerman and Ogletree will take the field for the first time since their setbacks today at 2 p.m. in the Cavaliers' spring game at Scott Stadium.

"It's been awhile," Ogletree said. "The last couple of times I've been [in Scott Stadium], I've been in street clothes. So it's going to be good to get dressed, get suited up and get some snaps out there with my teammates."

One of those teammates is Peerman, who amassed 585 rushing yards and five touchdowns before his injury in Virginia's sixth game last season.

He said the injury was difficult to deal with, especially because of how well he performed before he went down.

"It was pretty frustrating. I'm not going to lie," Peerman said. "I love football. I love coming out here playing. It hurt pretty bad because I wasn't able to do that anymore. But at the same time, I thank God. I really needed this whole process to humble me and set my path straight."

Cavaliers head coach Al Groh said he has been cautious with Peerman this spring, mainly because the rising senior is a veteran player who has nothing to prove.

There have been no such limitations on Ogletree, a rising junior, who was granted an extra year of eligibility after his injury.

Ogletree began practicing with the Cavaliers last season, even emulating Virginia Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor for the scout team the week of Virginia's game with its archrival.

Ogletree said as soon as he knew the severity of his injury, he was determined to come back stronger. He had 52 receptions and four touchdowns as a sophomore and was named honorable mention all-ACC.

"I was just keeping in mind those days when I woke up and there was some things I couldn't do," Ogletree said of his motivation for a speedy recovery. "I was at a point where I wasn't able to participate with my teammates, and it hurt. That's what gave me my edge to work back."

Peerman said he's glad Ogletree's back.

He said the 6-foot-2, 189-pound St. Albans, N.Y., native will give the Cavaliers the deep threat they lacked last season when their wide receivers combined for just 72 receptions (21 less than the tight ends and 13 less than the running backs) and four touchdowns.

"He brings a level of explosiveness that we really need at the wide receiver position," Peerman said.

Groh said Ogletree "looks just like Kevin did before he went down."

Peerman is the same, too, with the exception of a metal wire that stabilizes his foot.

"I don't think I can make it through a metal detector anymore," he joked following a recent spring practice.

The lighthearted mood is much different from the one he was in directly following his injury.

But Peerman didn't sulk for long. He sought the advice of other college and professional players who endured the same injury.

Now Peerman is looking forward to finishing what he started in his promising junior season.

"Some days are good. Some days are bad," he said. "But I'm just trying to keep pushing and get better each and every day."

 

Cavs storm back to top Terps
By Jay Jenkins
Published: April 12, 2008

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Virginia used its biggest comeback since 2006 to take the opening game in a three-game set at Maryland.
Trailing by two runs entering the eighth inning, the Cavaliers batted around and scored six times en route to a lopsided 11-6 win at Shipley Field that seemed improbable for much of the contest.
The win, just the third on the road this season for the Cavaliers (27-9, 9-7 ACC), was their 16th straight over the Terrapins (20-15, 5-11).
“What I am proud about with our team in this game is that we met adversity and they responded,” said Virginia coach Brian O’Connor. “That is great to see.”
Virginia reliever Neal Davis, who entered in the sixth inning with Virginia trailing 6-4, pitched three scoreless innings to register his second victory.
More importantly, Davis worked out of a bases-loaded situation in the seventh by getting Maryland catcher Chad Durakis to hit into an inning-ending double play. Durakis hit a hard grounder to UVa third baseman Tyler Cannon, who fired home for a force to catcher Franco Valdes, who in turn relayed to first for the frame’s final out.
“That was huge and it generated a little momentum for us,” said Davis, who scattered three hits and walked a pair.
The Cavaliers exploded in the eighth, connecting on five singles and a double and taking advantage of spotty defense from Maryland.
For the contest, Virginia finished with 12 hits, one shy of Maryland’s tally, and helped starting pitcher Jacob Thompson - who was losing 6-2 at one point - earn a no-decision. The right-hander was chased in the sixth inning after allowing 10 hits and six earned runs.
“It’s one game,” O’Connor said. “We need to prove we can do it on back-to-back days in this league on the road and we haven’t done that yet, but I am proud of our team.
“Your All-American pitcher goes out there and doesn’t have his stuff and our guys didn’t quit. They didn’t feel sorry for themselves and they met adversity like big dogs. I think that win will serve us well.”
The two teams are scheduled to play today at 4 p.m.

 

Third Stone Bridge player commits to ACC program
Future Hokies make first-team All-Washington Metro
By Doug Doughty

Stone Bridge High School, the burgeoning Loudoun Country program that won last season’s Group AAA Division 5 football championship, already has had three juniors make commitments to ACC programs.

Michael Olson, a 6-foot-3, 185-pound linebacker, made an oral commitment to Wake Forest this week. Classmates David Wang and Brian Slay earlier had committed to Virginia Tech and North Carolina State, respectively.

A fourth ACC program, Virginia, is hoping to get in on the fun. The Cavaliers are considered the team to beat for Stone Bridge defensive end Zach Thompson, whose father, Mickey, played at UVa in the late 1970s.

Mickey Thompson is the head coach at Stone Bridge and has twin sons, Zach and Patrick. Patrick was the starting quarterback for Stone Bridge last year and threw four touchdown passes in the Division 5 title game.

Patrick Thompson (6-2, 205) has expressed interest in going to the same college as his 6-5, 240-pound brother but probably will return to tight end, his former position. The Thompson twins’ mother is a Virginia Tech graduate.

UPDATING THE LIST of the state’s top 100 seniors and where they will be playing in college:

No. 59 Kykeem Brodie, a running back from Western Branch in Chesapeake, is going to Old Dominion.

Brodie is one of eight Roanoke Times Top 100 seniors to commit or sign with Old Dominion, including linemen Bryan Morrison from Broad Run and Robbie Duncan from Park View-Sterling.

They were Nos. 97 and 99, respectively, on the list.

No. 62 Thomas Mulabah, a nose guard from Park View-Sterling, has committed to Division II California of Pennsylania.

No. 64 Will Wilson, an offensive lineman from Langley High School in McLean, will play for Army.

No. 74 C.J. Leizear, a prolific quarterback from Park View-Sterling High, is going to Division III Christopher Newport.

ERICK GREEN, one of two juniors who have committed to the Virginia Tech men’s basketball program, was named first-team All-Met by The Washington Post.

Green, a 6-foot-3 guard, was instrumental in Millbrook High School winning the Group AA championship and finishing 29-1. Green averaged 18.6 points and six assists as a senior.

The interesting note for Virginia fans was the selection of Gonzaga’s Cam Johnson to the All-Met boys’ third team. Johnson has signed with UVa for football but is giving some consideration to playing basketball for the Cavaliers.

Gonzaga finished 34-1 and was rated No. 1 in the Post’s final poll.

Getting back to the Hokies, they also had a representative on the All-Met girls’ first team, 5-11 Shanel Harrison from Good Counsel in Olney, Md. Harrison averaged 17.8 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.8 blocks and was named Washington Catholic Athletic Association player of the year.

JUST GOT the Oak Hill Academy final statistics from Lisa Smith, wife of head coach Steve Smith, and it’s easy to see how point guard Brandon Jennings was named Parade magazine national player of the year.

Not only did Jennings score 35.5 points per game, but he attempted 392 3-pointers (making 138), went to the free-throw 286 times (converting 82.5 percent) and had 46 dunks. He also had 235 assists.

Jennings broke the single-season Oak Hill scoring record previously held by Josh Smith, a former first-round NBA Draft pick who is in his fourth year with the Atlanta Hawks after going directly from Oak Hill to the pros.

Jennings is the first Parade player of the year for Oak Hill, no minor distinction considering the players who have played for Smith, including Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durrant and Michael Beasley.

TECH AND UVa men’s basketball recruiters were waiting to hear the results of a meeting today (Friday) between Marquette signee Tyshawn Taylor, new Marquette coach Buzz Williams and Taylor’s coach at St. Anthony’s Prep in Jersey City, N.J.

Taylor had indicated he would like to be released from his letter-of-intent after former Marquette coach Tom Crean left for Indiana, but the appointment of Williams, a Crean assistant who had been involved in Taylor’s original recruitment, was able to get the Warriors a face-to-face meeting.

DUKE’S CONNECTIONS to the Hurley family didn’t pay off in the Blue Devils’ efforts to get an oral commitment from 6-9, 263-pound junior Greg Echenique from St. Benedict’s in Newark, N.J.

Echenique, who committed to Rutgers, plays for Danny Hurley. Hurley is the son of Bob Hurley Sr. and the brother of Bobby Hurley, a collegiate standout for the Blue Devils.