Long's path to NFL paved with Hall of Fame genes
By Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY

Chris Long was 11 when his father finally relented to the adolescent pleas and allowed him to join a peewee football team.

Then, just out of the gate, he was benched — by that same Hall of Fame father.

"He beat up Kyle," Howie Long recalled this week.

You mean they were on the same team, and he took him to school on the practice field?

"No," Howie reiterated. "He beat him up."

Oh.

Kyle, Chris' younger brother, has grown into a 6-7, 285-pound left-hander with a 96-mph fastball. But a few years ago, he was pummeled by Chris, the oldest of Howie and Diane's three sons, in a skirmish while their father was away.

When Howie got wind of the incident, he iced Chris' football with stiff discipline straight from the tough-love parenting handbook: Take away something they enjoy.

The flashback is significant as Chris, a 6-3, 272-pound defensive end coming off a 14-sack season at the University of Virginia, is poised to become one of the top selections Saturday in the NFL draft.

Howie, the Fox studio analyst who once was a terror in the trenches for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders, taught Chris plenty about the game over the years. Howie was a hands-on assistant coach for Chris' high school team. He helped refine his son's pass-rush techniques with living room clinics. And while Chris developed in college, father-son Monday night film sessions became a ritual.

"My dad taught me to work hard and to be the same guy every day," Chris says.

His father also used football, in pulling the plug on peewee ball, to drive home a message he has constantly preached at the family's home outside Charlottesville, Va.

"I tell them, 'Look around the kitchen table: This is what you've got,' " says Howie, who was raised by uncles in Boston after his parents divorced. " 'If you've got two or three true friends in your life, you're fortunate. But at the end of the day, this is your family. These are the people who will throw themselves in front of the bus for us.' "

Chris endured Howie and Diane's football suspension and resumed playing as a ninth-grader at St. Anne's-Belfield School. Even then, Howie had his reservations. But for different reasons. He never pushed any of his sons into football, and he surely didn't want Chris to pressure himself into trying to follow in his father's footsteps.

"As a matter of fact, I went in the other direction," Howie says. "Maybe he kind of gravitated to football because of that. That's the law of physics when it comes to parents and their children. They push when you pull. You push and they pull."

Top-five talent

As the countdown to the draft affirmed, Chris, 23, has made a name for himself on the football field that transcends his pedigree. An athletically gifted, versatile playmaker who roamed to various positions in coach Al Groh's 3-4 defense, he was the Atlantic Coast Conference's defensive player of the year in 2007. His sack total was 10 more than the previous year, and that was in addition to 23 pressures, 19 tackles for losses and nine deflections.

Until the Miami Dolphins settled on Michigan tackle Jake Long as the No. 1 pick overall, several draft experts pegged Chris for the top slot. He's still projected as a top-five pick.

"He's probably the safest pick up there," Cleveland Browns general manager Phil Savage says. "He's a leader, and he's tough. I don't think you're going to go wrong with him. He may not be a perennial Pro Bowler, but I think he'll be a good, solid player for a few years."

Safe isn't necessarily a negative when it comes to the draft. NFL history is littered with busts at the top of the draft. Considering that more than half of the first-round picks in the last 20 drafts never made it to a Pro Bowl, and factoring in high monetary investments — the top five picks last year signed contracts that guaranteed $22 million — safe can be very good.

Even so, there's still the question of exactly where Long will line up on the field. Depending on the team that selects him, he might convert to outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense. He could be pegged to line up at right end in a 4-3, the scheme used by the St. Louis Rams, picking No. 2 overall. He might also play right end in a 3-4, as he did in college, or shift to the left side in either scheme.

"People talk about what a transition it would be for me to be a 3-4 linebacker," he says. "But let's not forget that I never played in a 4-3 in college. Either position would be a fresh start for me and an opportunity to learn and progress."

Savage and Kevin Colbert, the Pittsburgh Steelers director of football operations, project Long as an end in a 3-4, a role more associated with eating space than featured pass-rusher. But Groh, who spent 13 years coaching in the NFL — including one as the head coach of the New York Jets, sees Long as the prototype 3-4 outside linebacker.

The difference in opinion vouches for Long's versatility. Groh used Long all across his front, seeking to gain mismatches. Groh said that in addition to matchup advantages, Long's spike in sacks last season was linked to more dynamic pass-rush moves refined by techniques that freed him up to close on quarterbacks a step or two faster.

Groh rushed Long off the edge of either side, then sometimes sent him from an inside slot. He came out of both three-point stances or two-point looks.

"The defensive coordinator will be constrained only by his own imagination," NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock says of Long's next stop. "That's pretty cool."

High achiever, freakish skills

Few discussions about Long get deep without reference to his "high motor." The description has stuck like Velcro, a compliment to Long's hustle and work ethic — and maybe his genes, as his father often was described in the same vein. But as much as the tag is meant as a positive, it invites caution because it can be applied subjectively and feed stereotypes.

Is Long more revved than other top D-linemen? Rams personnel director Billy Devaney says Long, LSU's Glenn Dorsey and Southern California's Sedrick Ellis rate similarly on the effort meter. Yet in the cases of Dorsey and Ellis, "high motor" has not become the calling card that it is for Long.

"Everybody talks about the high motor, but I think it's overplayed," Mayock says. "You disrespect him by saying he's an overachiever. He's a high achiever, with freakish athletic skills."

Long, who won a YMCA slam-dunk contest in high school, affirmed his athleticism at the combine with some of the best marks among D-linemen in events such as the 40-yard dash (4.75), the 20-yard shuttle (4.21), three-cone drill (7.02), broad jump (10-4) and vertical jump (34 inches).

Such a performance hardly surprised linebacker Clint Sintim, Long's teammate and one of his housemates for three years. Sintim mentions Long's work ethic, too, and how his initial impressions of Long were way off base.

"He's always hungry," Sintim says. "That says a lot about his character. You'd think a guy growing up privileged would take it easier. But I guess the drive and passion to be good at football means everything to him."

Chris' brothers have hitched to other sports, which is a good thing with Howie declaring "football is not our family business."

Kyle, a senior at St. Anne's, was a highly regarded tackle sought by major colleges. But he chose baseball, signing a letter of intent to play at Florida State. He might be a high-round pick in the major league draft in June. Howie Jr., a junior, already has committed to play lacrosse at Virginia.

Chris is confident enough to occasionally trash-talk Howie.

"I've said, 'Dad, you're an old man now. It's not your time anymore,' " Chris says. "He's done a great job with that, and I'm grateful. And I've matured to the point that now I am comfortable sharing that spotlight."

Name is no burden

There's a chance Chris could wind up with the Raiders, who hold the fourth pick. That would add a layer of expectation. CNBC columnist Darren Rovell already has suggested that Chris could have the best-selling rookie jersey if he landed in Oakland and wore his father's old No. 75.

"Obviously, there's so much more to it there," Chris says. "But I'm not afraid of any situation or any burden with the name. I've been dealing with this stuff my whole life. Obviously, it will be taken to a new level in a place like that. It's pressure, but I tend to welcome any pressure with open arms."

When Chris visited Oakland this month as part of a predraft tour, Howie made certain to give his kid a message for Raiders D-line coach Keith Millard.

"I told him, 'Tell Keith that as a pass-rusher, you're more like him than you're like me,' " Howie said, referring to Millard's nine-year NFL playing career. "He uses swim moves, quickness, explosion. He's an inside-out rusher. That was never me."

Despite the rich NFL connections and lineage, Howie insists that on draft day the Longs will be just like the families of Dorsey and Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan, wrapped in the excitement of finally finding out where their star will begin his pro career.

In another way, though, the Longs figure to be different.

Saturday happens to be the date of St. Anne's-Belfield's junior-senior prom, which is why Kyle and Howie Jr. won't attend the draft in New York. Howie and Diane, once sweethearts at Villanova, will rush back for a prom that includes the tradition of senior boys having their last dance with their mothers.

"That's a big deal," Howie says. "Mom wants to be back for that."

 

Santi awaits draft fate
By Jay Jenkins
Published: April 24, 2008

Allen Billyk, fresh off a redshirt season, remembers the moment clear as day.
Mired in what many would have considered a meaningless special teams drill, a never-say-die mentality helped a rookie tight end steal the show.
Play after play. Minute by minute. Tom Santi would not be denied.
“He was busting his butt in camp, and the coaches said, ‘Wow, we have to look at this guy more at tight end and special teams because he is out there busting his tail to get on the field,’” said Billyk, a former nose tackle. “That helped Tom get on the field and he never stopped with that relentless attitude. He just kept it up his whole career.”
After grabbing 97 receptions, racking up 1,184 receiving yards and scoring six touchdowns during a glorified career inside and out of the classroom, Santi awaits the next step — his NFL home.
While most of the local buzz has been thrust on defensive end Chris Long and offensive lineman Branden Albert, two sure-fire early selections, Santi will also learn his fate this weekend, either Saturday or likely Sunday, during the seven-round NFL draft.
And Billyk and other teammates have raved about what an organization will be landing in Santi.
“It is nice for somebody to say that, but I don’t know man, I just think that’s the way the game is supposed to be played,” Santi said from Nashville, Tenn., on Wednesday. “I think everybody should play as hard as they can every time they get a chance to be out there.
“That won’t change with me. That’s the kind of player that I am and that’s the mentality that I have. Every opportunity I have, I have to make the most of it, and especially now. There are a lot of people who would like to have this opportunity and I’m just
fortunate enough to have it and I have to make the most of it.”
Where his first paycheck comes from remains to be seen. Santi has been projected as high as the third round and even potentially undrafted in some odd circles.
“I don’t have any clue,” Santi said. “They don’t tell you a whole lot. You talk to teams and they tell you that they like you, but that is all you hear.
“Basically, the way I look at it, I have done everything I can do up to this point and it’s going to be what it is whether I worry about it or not so I am just going to sit back and wait to hear.”
Luckily, teams from the NFL combine and a pro day workout and countless hours of film to help scout the
6-foot-5, 250-pounder.
One play, at least in Billyk’s eyes, should stand out.
On a special teams play against Connecticut last year, Santi came flying in to deliver a massive jaw-dropping hit.
“It was right on the sidelines, and that was crazy because he had some shoulder problems leading into that and he was still out there trying to knock someone’s head off,” Billyk recounted. “It was on a punt and he just caught him at the sidelines and totally smacked that guy.
“It was nice to see that because everyone knew that he had been sitting out some practices with some issues and it was like, ‘Look at this guy laying it on the line for us out there.’”
Santi credits the drive and determination that two of his predecessors played with early in his career.
“I had a great opportunity, even early in my career, as I got to learn from some of the best guys that have played the position at Virginia, maybe ever, in Heath Miller and Pat Estes, as well,” Santi said. “I learned a lot from those guys and I am sure that has been a big part in my development as a player.
“And I had Jon Stupar there and John Phillips and that just made it a lot of fun. We got to compete with one another and push each other all the time.”

 

Brooks answers the call of home
David Teel
April 24, 2008

Aaron Brooks was 26 and flush. He led the NFL in touchdown passes, his team was in first place and he'd just signed a $36 million contract.

He was also wonderfully honest.

"Of course money's going to change me," Brooks said in October 2002. "It's going to change the way I dress, change what I eat, change the car I drive. But it's not going to change the Aaron Brooks inside. I've always been a humble, giving, loving and understanding person. ...

"I want to give back. I'm always coming back home. I'll never forget that place. Every chance I get, I'm coming back home."

On Tuesday, Brooks continued to make good on his vow.

Returning to his downtown Newport News roots, Brooks unveiled plans for the Southeast Commerce Center, a vision that includes townhomes, condominiums, eateries, retail outlets and a quality grocery store in one of the city's bleakest neighborhoods.

"I really don't have to do this," Brooks said at his announcement. "I do it because I want to do it."

Indeed, given their salaries, many professional athletes don't have to do a doggone thing in retirement. Unless you consider smoking Cuban cigars, playing charity golf gigs and signing autographs manual labor.

That's not enough for Brooks. Not nearly enough. Never has been.

Brooks' community awareness was evident long before his football career ended in early 2007. He volunteered as a Big Brother in New Orleans, where he played for the NFL's Saints; he established, along with his wife, Tisa, the Aaron Brooks Family Foundation, a charity that reached out to the needy of New Orleans and Newport News.

The Southeast Commerce Center is his most ambitious project, and the region's landscape is littered with similar ambitions that failed — Wednesday's Daily Press reported on a Hampton waterfront condominium-marina plan headed to a second foreclosure.

But few, if any, investors are as personally connected as Brooks, who teared up during Tuesday's news conference.

In concert with the city, Brooks said his company, Tidewater Partners Property and Development LLC, will dedicate "tens of millions of dollars" to revitalize a 14-acre plot between Jefferson and Terminal Avenues, and 33rd and 29th Streets. It sure could use it.

As Vice Mayor Charles Allen told the Daily Press' Sabine Hirschauer, he yearns for a community in which folks want to live, instead of have to live.

Wander the area today and you'll find vacant fields, abandoned autos, fast-food joints and guys hanging out in front of a boarded-up building. The one beacon is First Baptist Church East End, a 25,000-square foot jewel that opened last year and cost more than $5 million.

The 600-member church dates to 1896 and participated last summer in a prayer walk prompted by gun violence in the neighborhood. Folks crowded sidewalks from 26th to 36th Street on that July Sunday morning.

Brooks grew up on 11th Street. He led his Doris Miller team to a city youth football championship, starred at Ferguson High in midtown and earned a scholarship to the University of Virginia.

As a junior in 1997, Brooks ranked 11th nationally in passing efficiency. The following season, he quarterbacked one of the Cavaliers' finest teams, a 9-3 squad that lost only to top-25 opponents Georgia Tech, Florida State and Georgia. Brooks majored in anthropology and headed to the NFL.

In December 2000, he helped the Saints to their first-ever playoff victory, over defending Super Bowl champion St. Louis no less. And when I spent a week with him in New Orleans in 2002, his Saints were 6-1 and his signing bonus was $5 million.

Alas, football never got better for Brooks. New Orleans released him in 2005, as did the Oakland Raiders after the 2006 season.

Could Brooks have played last season, and beyond? Heck yes, though perhaps not as a starter.

He just turned 32 and isn't ravaged by injury. Playoff quarterbacks Matt Hasselbeck (Seattle) and Peyton Manning (Indianapolis) are 32, and Green Bay legend Brett Favre just retired at 38.

But Brooks couldn't find the right fit last season and instead turned his attention toward home. Our gain.


 

Cavs fail to rally past Tribe
By Jay Jenkins
Published: April 24, 2008

In a sport loaded with statistical numbers, two stood out to Virginia coach Brian O’Connor during his scouting of William and Mary.
The Tribe entered ranked fifth in batting and led the country with 17 saves.
Unfortunately for UVa, the Tribe (30-12) padded their stats in both.
Behind a display of timely hitting and a dominant dose of pitching in the final frame, William & Mary upended Virginia, 6-5, at Davenport Field to win for the first time in the series since 2001.
“I thought it was a pretty well-played ball game and William and Mary has a pretty good ball club,” O’Connor said. “They proved why they have a good team tonight.
“We just couldn’t get the clutch hits when we needed to and they did. That’s baseball.”
Virginia (32-12) also learned a valuable lesson — again. After a sluggish start, the Cavaliers were unable to generate enough offense to mount another late-inning comeback.
“We played well Sunday, we played well [Tuesday] and we saw what it takes to win a baseball game,” said Virginia catcher Franco Valdes. “We turned it on too late and all this game teaches us is to turn it on earlier and to turn it on from the start.
“You have to start in inning No. 1 and not in the fifth or the sixth and try to rally back. But I don’t think this is going to put us back in any way.”
William & Mary, having won 10 of its last 11 games, scored a pair of runs in the third inning off starter Jeff Lorick (3-2) on a two-run double by centerfielder Ben Guez.
Virginia answered in the fourth when Valdes belted a two-run double into the gap in left-center field and scored on a single from rookie John Barr.
The 3-2 lead, however, did not last long.
After allowing a single to James Williamson to open the fifth, Lorick grooved a pitch to Tyler Stampone that quickly sailed over the wall in left-center field.
“I wasn’t so sure what was going to happen at that point,” said William and Mary coach Frank Leoni. “For us to get the leadoff guy on in that inning, I think, was crucial. Then [Lorick] left the ball in the middle of the plate for Stampone’s home run and from their you could feel the confidence going and we were ready to get on that guy and we did.”
Lorick, who allowed seven hits and five runs (four earned) in four innings, was chased from the game one batter later after he gave up the homer.
“We scored three runs and took the lead and we gave it right back to them by letting that leadoff hitter get on and you just can’t do that,” O’Connor said. “That’s when you have to smell it and go out there as a pitcher and put a zero up for your team and [Lorick] didn’t do that, and they took the lead and never let it go.”
The Tribe added a run later in the fifth after Lorick’s departure and another in sixth off left-handed reliever Neal Davis to lead 6-3.
UVa managed to score lone runs in the sixth and eighth inning, respectively, but saw the first rally thwarted when a hard-hit liner from Valdes turned into a double play and after Dan Grovatt was stranded at second base in the latter.
William & Mary closer Pat Kantavich registered his eighth save by retiring the side in the ninth. Cody Winslow earned the win on the mound, improving to 4-1 as he gave up five hits and three earned runs in five innings.
Offensively, William & Mary finished with 11 hits, including three doubles and the homer.
“I feel pretty good about what we did,” Leoni said. “[Virginia is] awfully good. Their arms are as good as we have seen all year. Our guys have confidence going right now and that makes the world of difference in games like this.
“We didn’t exactly knock the cover off the ball but we executed at the right times, got a couple of key two-out hits and that proved to be the difference in the game.”
Virginia travels to face top-ranked Miami on Friday.


 

Tribe chops down comeback attempt to win by one
Cavs close margin to 6-5 in eighth inning but were unable to mount comeback victory against W&M
Paul Montana, Cavalier Daily Senior Associate Editor

Going into a three-game series with Miami this weekend, the last thing the Virginia baseball team needed in its contest against William & Mary last night was yet another midweek clunker.

In a matchup between two of the commonwealth's finest, however, it was the Tribe that took control from the beginning and emerged the victor in the end, staving off the Cavaliers 6-5.

In the bottom of the eighth, trailing 6-4, Virginia mounted a comeback. Following a one-out single by junior second baseman David Adams, freshman Dan Grovatt lined a one-hopper down the right-field line that skipped over diving junior first baseman Mike Sheridan for an RBI double.

The Cavaliers left Grovatt standing on second with one out, however, as junior third basemen Jeremy Farrell and freshman right fielder David Coleman grounded out to end the threat.

The bottom of the order was mowed down 1-2-3 in the ninth, including a spectacular diving catch by Tribe junior centerfielder Ben Guez on a fly ball off the bat of sophomore catcher Franco Valdes to open the inning and a strikeout looking by freshman center fielder Jarrett Parker for the final out.

"We just couldn't get the clutch hits when we needed to, and they did," coach Brian O'Connor said. "That's baseball."

For the first 3.2 innings, Virginia could not figure out William & Mary sophomore starting pitcher Cody Winslow. The right-hander had an odd combination of an intimidating 6-foot-8 stature, a disjointed, jerky windup and a junk-filled arsenal complemented by a sub-85 mph fastball. Whatever it was about Winslow that bothered the Virginia lineup, the Cavaliers had difficulty making solid contact in the early going, as Winslow shut out Virginia and allowed just two hits through 3.2 innings.

Meanwhile, a two-RBI double down the left-field line in the top of the third by Guez, who went 3 for 5 on the night, got William & Mary on the board first.

For the third time in two weeks, however, it was Valdes, the player with the lowest average in the Virginia order, who came up with a huge hit in the fourth inning to get the Cavaliers' offense going. Following a two-out walk from Farrell and a follow-up single by Coleman, Valdes drove a two-strike pitch to the gap in left center for a two-run double to knot the score at two apiece. Freshman John Barr added his name to the rally as well, with a single to left to score Valdes.

Valdes "has been very, very clutch for us offensively," O'Connor said. "If we get that from a couple more players, that's a game where we score eight runs rather than five."

Valdes said he and assistant coach Kevin McMullan have worked a lot at the plate, adding, "other than that, I'm guessing it just comes after a while."

The Tribe, however, would waste no time in responding. Junior second baseman James Williamson led off the inning with a single up the middle, and junior third baseman Tyler Stampone followed with a towering shot that cleared the bleachers in left field for just his second homerun of the year. The first-pitch single up the middle by Guez that followed was enough for O'Connor to pull sophomore starting pitcher Jeff Lorick in favor of sophomore Neal Davis.

Lorick finished with five runs, four of them earned, in four-plus innings of work. Though he threw two scoreless innings to start the evening, Lorick's dismissal from the game was accelerated by falling behind in counts throughout his outing, as he threw 67 pitches in his brief start.

Lorick "wasn't getting action early in the count, he was falling behind in the count, and that's a tough way to pitch against one of the top 10 offensive teams in the country," O'Connor said. "You just can't pitch behind in the count against a team like that, and he got burned by it."

The damage in the fifth, however, did not end there -- at no fault of Davis. With junior Sheridan at the plate, Davis made a pickoff attempt as Guez was stealing to force a run-down; junior shortstop Greg Miclat, however, could not come up with the throw from Farrell, which skirted into center field and moved Guez to third. Sheridan then grounded to Miclat, but the shortstop again could not make the play as he booted the ball into center field. Officially ruled an infield single, the play scored Guez to make the score 5-3.

"We scored three runs in the fourth and took the lead, and we gave it right back to them by letting that leadoff hitter get on," O'Connor said. "That's when you've got to smell it and you've got to go out there as a pitcher and put a zero up for your team."

For Miclat, who is still re-acclimating himself to playing shortstop every day after shoulder surgery in the off-season, O'Connor said, it may take time to get back in a rhythm defensively.

"When you can't play every day, you lose your instincts a little bit," O'Connor said. "He'll be OK. He's a good player; he'll bounce back."

The Cavaliers will all try to bounce back this weekend in a three-game road series against top-ranked Miami.

 

Goalie McBrearty gives Cavs edge in cage
By Bart Isley
Published: April 24, 2008

Little about Virginia’s Kendall McBrearty screams goalie. Take away her traditional sweatpants, and it’d be tough to tell the senior apart from any of her teammates. McBrearty is as athletic as they come in the cage in women’s lacrosse, and that makes her both an afront to the traditional biggest-kid-goes-in-goal stereotype and one of Virginia’s most potent weapons.
McBrearty doesn’t play the traditional hang-back-in-the-crease role for the Cavaliers (12-3, 5-1 ACC). Instead, she roams out to intercept passes and snag critical ground balls while also jumpstarting the offense’s fastbreak.
“That was always the stereotype, put the bigger kid in goal and I was never the bigger kid,” McBrearty said. “I’ve always been pretty athletic and I haven’t ever really been able to stay put.”
The senior’s style works well for her and No. 4 Virginia — well enough to earn McBrearty ACC tournament MVP honors in 2007. She’ll try and put together a repeat performance this week when the Cavaliers start ACC tournament play Friday against the winner of the Duke versus Virginia Tech quarterfinal scheduled for 1 p.m. today at Scott Stadium.
“At tournament time, it’s go big or go home,” McBrearty said. “I love it.”
McBrearty and the Cavalier defense surrendered just 6.81 goals per game during the regular season, good for third nationally and best in the ACC. Only Penn’s Sarah Waxman and No. 1 Northwestern’s Morgan Lathrop have
surrendered less.
The Cavaliers held opponents under 10 goals in all but one outing, back on March 12 against William and Mary in a 14-11 victory. That consistency has become McBrearty’s hallmark this season.
“I was pretty consistent last year but I feel like this year I’ve been a lot more consistent,” McBrearty said. “I’ve become a lot smarter about when to do something and when not to do something.”
To get to that point, McBrearty has curtailed some of her roaming outside the cage — she’s not afraid to gamble, but she’s gotten much better at deciding when to take a chance. Still, what sets McBrearty apart is her all-around game, a product of playing both tennis and basketball in high school. Her interceptions and plays on ground balls have been the catalyst for any number of breaks by the Cavaliers’ explosive offense.
“She’s definitely one of the most athletic goalies I’ve ever seen,” said junior midfielder Blair Weymouth. “A lot of what happens on offense starts with her.”
McBrearty is also one of the most vocal goalies. The senior used to be accused of talking too much on the field at certain times, a product of her excitable nature. Like everything else, McBrearty’s field chatter has improved and become more efficient as she’s gotten older. She’s also learned when to channel that energy better. Last year during the ACC tournament she may have gone overboard a little bit in the later stages of one game.
“Even when we were up by four with like 30 seconds left I was turning to my teammates and I was like ‘We can still lose, we can still lose,’” McBrearty said. “I’m a little bit more relaxed now — I know what we’ll face more and how to handle it. I’ve definitely grown over the past year, but I still get excited.”
Of course she does. It’s tournament time.

 

Team vies for third consecutive ACC title this weekend
Title would continue Virginia's year of milestones; Cavaliers could have chance to avenge regular-season loss to Terrapins in championship match
Ryan Williams, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor

It has been a season of milestones for the Virginia women's lacrosse team. In one game against Johns Hopkins, the program reached 400 wins, only the third to do so in the NCAA, and head coach Julie Myers won her 100th game in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers seek to continue their winning ways on the path toward capturing their third consecutive ACC Championship.

Last year, in Chapel Hill, N.C., Virginia pounced on No. 5-seeded North Carolina for a 12-6 victory after downing Duke 13-8 in Baltimore the year before. This year the Cavaliers, who already have a 7-0 home win record this season, will have the added benefit of playing on Grounds. The women's tournament games this season will be held at Scott Stadium, while Klöckner Stadium will be home to the men's contests.

The Cavaliers (12-3, 4-1 ACC) know what is on the line this weekend.

"I think we have one of the hardest conferences in lacrosse," junior midfielder Ashley McCulloch said. "It's really tough to win. It also will give us good seeding for the NCAA Tournament and we will most likely face teams we play in the ACC Tournament again. So to come out winning, that would give us a lot of momentum."

Virginia will get its first test tomorrow at 3 p.m. The squad comes in as the ACC regular-season co-champions, tied with Maryland at the top of the league, and will be seeded No. 2 in the tournament because of a regular-season loss to those same Terrapins. Getting a first-round bye in the tournament will help when the Cavaliers face the winner of today's game between No. 3-seeded Duke and No. 6-seeded Virginia Tech.

Virginia, currently ranked No. 4 in the nation, beat both of these teams in the regular season, going on the road to beat Duke 13-9 and Virginia Tech 14-6.

The squad will be focused and excited to face whichever opponent comes calling tomorrow afternoon.

"We want a big challenge and we especially want a huge game for Friday because if we get past that, Sunday will be an even bigger game," senior attacker and captain Megan O'Malley said. "So, any challenge that can help us to get better along the way is the best for our team."

The team that pulls out a win tomorrow afternoon will play in the Sunday championship game, O'Malley said. If the No. 1-seeded Terrapins are able to get past the winner of No. 4-seeded Boston College and No. 5-seeded North Carolina, Virginia could have the opportunity to avenge a 5-8 loss at College Park earlier this season.

Regardless of who it faces this weekend, the Cavaliers will rely on the high-flying offense that has powered the team to its strong regular-season record. The team will be led on the offensive end by McCulloch, who has 20 goals and 30 assists to lead her team with 50 points. Leading Virginia in goals scored have been junior attackers Jenny Hauser and Blair Weymouth with 30 apiece. The team has spread the wealth however, as 15 players have gotten in the scoring column this season, and 12 of them have scored goals.

The anchor for the Cavaliers this entire season has been its defense. Senior goalkeeper Kendall McBrearty leads the way with just 6.81 goals allowed per game and a .522 save percentage, both good enough to lead the ACC. Also a key contributor to the defense, senior defender Alice Hughey has caused 25 turnovers on the season.

In just her first year as a starter, Hughey has enjoyed the opportunity to contribute more and lead her teammates. She knows what it will take to win another ACC Tournament.

"When we played Duke last time, we were really stingy on defense," Hughey said. "We need to keep that going with whatever team we are faced with throughout the tournament. It's important to just focus when we're preparing and do the best that we can do in terms of getting our minds right with the opponent we're playing."

The team is clearly focused on what it must to do win this tournament. The Cavaliers know, however, that a good showing this weekend would make its résumé stronger for the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Virginia could clinch a top seed and home field advantage in the first round with an ACC Championship victory.

"It helps going into the NCAA Tournament with confidence and high morale while being able to play at home," O'Malley said. "The competition is only going to get more fierce now that it's tournament time, and winning the ACC Tournament will be an unbelievable accomplishment going into the NCAA Tournament."
 

Quiet Cape Henry Collegiate grad takes care of business on the field

ACC men's lacrosse championship

When: Friday and Sunday

Where: Klockner Stadium, University of Virginia

Friday: No. 1 Duke (13-1) vs. No. 4 North Carolina (8-4), 5 p.m.; No. 2 Maryland (8-4) vs. No. 3 Virginia (11-2), 7:30 p.m.

Sunday: Championship, 3:30 p.m.

Outlook: Duke is the team to beat. The Blue Devils edged Syracuse for the No. 1 spot in this week's national poll and beat Virginia 19-9 two weeks ago. The Cavaliers, ranked No. 3 in the nation, have the advantage as host of the tournament. They're 5-1 at home this year.

By Ed Miller
The Virginian-Pilot
© April 24, 2008

He speaks softly and carries a long stick.

Off the lacrosse field, Virginia's Mike Timms is invariably described as quiet and studious. He'll graduate next month with a degree in economics, has a Wall Street internship lined up this summer, and plans to enroll in a graduate business program next year.

Between the lines, though, Timms transforms into somebody completely different. He's a "hawk on the ball," says Ryan Kelly, his best friend and teammate.

"He continues to chase every which way and just doesn't give up," Kelly said.

Dom Starsia, Virginia's longtime coach, agrees.

"He's a very disruptive influence," he said.

For a long-stick midfielder, there is no higher compliment. It's a position that is often under appreciated, even in lacrosse circles. At Virginia, though, Timms is a key piece of a team that has its eyes on another national title. The Cavaliers, 11-2 and ranked No. 3 in the nation, open postseason play Friday in the ACC tournament, which Virginia is hosting.

"We definitely have the talent and personnel to win a championship," said Timms, a Cape Henry Collegiate graduate who was on Virginia's last national title team as a freshman in 2006. "There are other good teams out there, but there's no team that's so much better than us that we can't beat them."

There are also few "long-stick mids" in the country who can match Timms, a second-team preseason All-American.

If his role on the team is somewhat a mystery to the casual fan, his presence on the field is undeniable.

"At 6-foot-5, with that blonde hair, he tends to stand out," Starsia said.

Timms' quick feet, non stop motor and that 6 -foot-long stick he wields make him all the more noticeable from the sidelines, as well as menacing on the field.

Timms' role is to create havoc. When Virginia loses the ball on offense, he subs in on the fly as offensive players run out. As the only midfielder with the longer defenseman's stick, his role is to cover the other team's best offensive midfielder. He's an ominous, poking presence all over the field who tries to create turnovers. When the ball is loose, it's his job to win it for the Cavaliers.

"It's fun, but also tiring," he said.

Timms was 13 when he took up lacrosse at the urging of Kelly, whose parents are heavily involved in the sport in Virginia Beach.

"My parents somewhat forced him into the sport," Kelly said jokingly. "I don't think it was anything he really wanted to do that much."

Timms was content playing soccer and basketball, but was encouraged to try all sports by Maribeth Frank, his aunt and guardian. She stepped in to raise Timms and his brother and sister after their parents died. Timms was 8 when his father died of cancer and 9 when his mother was killed in a crash with a drunken driver.

Frank moved into the family home and stressed that the children should not define themselves by their loss. She was "a spark plug," Timms said.

"She definitely jumped in when she needed to and did a great job with us," Timms said. "She was always driving all three of us around wherever we needed to be."

The Kellys saw that Timms was a natural athlete and eventually got a lacrosse stick into his hands. He made the Cape Henry varsity squad as an eighth-grader, though it was more for his athletic ability than his lacrosse skills. Starsia recalls scouting Timms at a soccer match, marveling at the way he covered the field and calling him the biggest high school forward he'd ever seen.

Timms was still undecided about which sport to play when he was sidelined by a knee injury his junior year. Unable to play soccer or basketball, he concentrated on lacrosse. He and Kelly chose to attend Virginia.

Though are both are seniors academically, Timms has a year of eligibility remaining and will compete as a graduate student next year. Kelly, an attackman who has missed most of this season with a knee injury, will wrap up his career this year.

"In high school, it seemed he had the athletic ability but possibly not the lacrosse ability to play here," Kelly said. "He's brought the two together. He's just an athletic freak in general, and his lacrosse skills have just grown exponentially throughout his time here."

Watching opposing players try to avoid the lanky, long-reaching Timms can be almost comical, Kelly said. His specialty is the takeaway check from behind, in which he reaches over the heads of players preparing to shoot.

Timms is at his best when opponents are running from him, afraid he'll take the ball, Kelly said.

"That's a pretty constant fear," Kelly said. "Guys are running circles trying to protect their sticks. They have such a fear of what he's going to do."

Timms confesses to enjoying being an intimidator on the field. He'll like it even more if Virginia brings home the ACC title this weekend or, even better, another national title in May.

 

U.VA. Notes: ACC championships record could be beaten
Thursday, Apr 24, 2008 - 12:07 AM

ACC championships record could be beaten
During the 2003-04 academic year, University of Virginia teams captured a school-record six ACC championships - men's soccer, men's swimming, women's swimming, women's rowing, men's tennis and women's lacrosse.

U.Va. could tie or break that mark this weekend. The ACC will crown champions in men's and women's lacrosse Sunday in Charlottesville, and the Cavaliers are title contenders in both.

Virginia already has won ACC titles in men's cross country, men's swimming, women's swimming, women's rowing and men's tennis. Florida State and North Carolina are tied for second with four ACC championships apiece in 2007-08, and Virginia Tech is fourth with three.

The ACC has four tournaments left: Sunday's lacrosse tournaments, softball (May 8-11 at College Park, Md.) and baseball (May 21-25 at Jacksonville, Fla.).

In 2004-05 and again in'05-06, U.Va. won five ACC championships.

U.S. Sports Academy competition heating up
U.Va., which finished 13th in the U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup competition in 2006-07, is 23rd in the latest standings. But Virginia figures to fare well in the spring, its strongest season, and a top-10 finish is a realistic goal.

The Directors' Cup competition reflects schools' performances in NCAA championships. U.Va.'s best finish was eighth, in 1999. It has been 13th four times: in 1998, 2000, 2005 and 2007.

Basketball assistant could be fit for Bucknell
Pat Flannery's decision to step down as Bucknell's basketball coach could have implications for U.Va. One of Dave Leitao's assistants, Bill Courtney, is a former Bucknell guard who in October was inducted into his alma mater's athletic hall of fame.

Courtney said yesterday that he has not been contacted by Bucknell, but Leitao won't be surprised if Courtney emerges as a candidate to replace Flannery.

"Any time you're in your university's hall of a fame and a favorite son, that's going to be talked about," Leitao said.

Courtney, who grew up in Northern Virginia, spent eight years as an assistant at George Mason - the final three as Jim Larranaga's associate head coach - before leaving for Providence. After one season with the Friars, Courtney joined Leitao's staff at U.Va. in 2006.

Another former aide to Leitao Toledo-bound
Leitao's first staff at U.Va. included Gene Cross, whom Toledo recently hired as head coach. Cross spent three seasons with Leitao at DePaul before following him to U.Va.

Cross, who has strong family ties to the Midwest, left U.Va. after the 2005-06 season to join Mike Brey's staff at Notre Dame.

Asked about his two most recent bosses, Cross told the Toledo Blade newspaper: "I'd put it like this: Dave hates to lose. Mike loves to win. I think I've learned a balance in both of those."

2 draft first-rounders likely, matching '97
Only once - in 1997 - have two players from U.Va. been selected in the first round of an NFL draft. Linebacker James Farrior, a Matoaca High graduate, went to the Jets with the eighth pick, and the Eagles drafted defensive end Jon Harris 25th overall.

Farrior and Harris figure to have company Saturday, when the Cavaliers' all-ACC first-team picks from 2007 - defensive end Chris Long and offensive lineman Branden Albert - are expected to be among the first 20 players taken in the draft. Long could go as high as No. 2, to the St. Louis Rams.

Others from U.Va. who might be drafted include tight end Tom Santi. The first two rounds will be held on Saturday, the final five on Sunday. - Jeff White