5/18/02 - Relief...Mapp

By ANDREW JOYNER
Daily Progress staff writer

In his first comments to the media in more than a year, Virginia sophomore point guard Majestic Mapp said Friday that his recovery from an ACL tear in his right knee is progressing well and he expects to end his two-year absence from the court next season.
“For the most part, the knee is progressing fine. I don’t really have any more problems with the knee. Those problems have been minimized,” said Mapp, who originally suffered the injury in August 2000 during a pickup game at his alma mater, St. Raymond’s High School, in the Bronx.
“It’s just a matter of getting my quads and my hamstring back to 100 percent. The quad and hamstring is everything that supports the knee. Right now, that’s what I have to work on to get back where I want to be.”
Mapp, who will have at least two years of eligibility remaining and could apply for a third, said he expects to be fully ready to play when UVa’s practices begin in October.
He is doing some light drills right now and is awaiting a chance to test his quads in order to be cleared for full drills, practice and pick-up games. According to Mapp, that quad has to be at least at 62 percent to “pass” those tests.
“To be honest with you, the quad could be there right now. I just haven’t had it tested. When you get tested, it puts a lot of pressure on you, so I’m just going to keep working as hard as I can in order to feel better,” said Mapp, who averaged 5.3 points and 2.3 assists during his freshman season in 1999-2000.
Mapp originally underwent surgery on the knee in late August 2000. He then underwent two additional procedures at UVa in the spring of 2001.
After more complications with the knee last summer, Mapp consulted Californian physician Dr. Arthur J. Ting, a former team doctor for the San Francisco 49ers, and later had a second major operation on the knee last October that now seems to have it back on the healing track.
Needless to say, the countless surgeries and missing two seasons has been a frustrating process for Mapp, who will have accumulated enough credits to graduate in December.
“It’s been very frustrating definitely. Anyone who has to have surgery ... it’s a frustrating thing. Anybody who has to not do something they love doing, not for one year but two years, is frustrating. Basketball is a sport I love. I just want to play basketball,” said Mapp, whose absence both years has limited the Cavaliers’ depth at point guard. “I just know that I could have helped my team in some way these past two years, and that’s the most frustrating part. … Things are getting better and they are on the upside, and that’s all I can ask for.”
A fully recovered Mapp will add to Virginia’s overall depth in the backcourt, specifically at point guard. Right now, sophomore Keith Jenifer and Rutgers transfer Todd Billet are also possibilities at the point.
“I’m not worried about that situation. That will be the coach’s decision and he’ll do whatever is right for the team,” Mapp said. “I’m just at a point where if I get my quad and hamstring back where they need to be, then I think everything else will speak for itself.”
It seems likely now that the backcourt will not include Roger Mason Jr., a close friend of Mapp’s. Last month, Mason announced his intention to enter June’s NBA draft. While he has not hired an agent, there is a general belief around the UVa program that he will not return to school for his senior season.
“It’s disappointing to have played only one year with Roger. … He’s a great player. And being able to play with him would have helped me,” Mapp said. “He’s my best friend here and he was the type of person that I would have loved playing with.
“I wish he was here and I think we’d be good together on the court, but it’s one of those things in which he has to do what’s best for him.”

Note. According to UVa media relations director Rich Murray, Mapp will be listed as a junior on Virginia’s roster next season. A petition to the NCAA for what would be a sixth season of eligibility does not have to be made until December 2003. The NCAA likely would grant Mapp the other year based on his medical hardships. Mapp said that he does intend to take that step in December.
“That is what I’m planning to do. School will be free, and I’ll be at the point to earn a master’s degree. It’s hard to get a regular degree and I’ll be where I could be getting a master’s. I think I’d be open to that idea because I enjoy college and I enjoy basketball,” Mapp said.
It was brought to Mapp’s attention that he could possibly even earn a Ph.D in that time.
“Probably so. That’s a lot of school but probably so,” said Mapp with a laugh.

CHARLOTTESVILLE Summer school starts June 11 at the University of Virginia. Stop by University Hall some evening after classes begin, and you might behold a heartwarming sight: Majestic Mapp, running and jumping and shooting and dribbling in a pickup game with his U.Va. teammates.

Mapp, who was a McDonald's All-American as a high school senior, hasn't played in a game since tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee Aug. 2, 2000, in his native New York City. That was the summer before his second year at U.Va. He had four operations on his knee - two of them reconstructive - in a span of about 14 months and missed what would have been his sophomore and junior seasons.

"I wouldn't want anyone to go through what Majestic's gone through these last two years," Cavaliers coach Pete Gillen said. "My heart certainly bleeds for Majestic. He's a wonderful young MAPP man."

Mapp, Gillen's first high-profile recruit at Virginia, hasn't lost hope, and he hasn't stopped rehabbing his knee. And now, about seven months after Dr. Arthur Ting performed major surgery on Mapp's knee in California, the 6-2 point guard sees a milestone approaching.

"Maybe this puts pressure on me, I don't know," Mapp said in a teleconference with reporters yesterday. "My target for myself [to resume playing pickup games] is maybe in the middle of June, when my teammates come back . . . I don't care whether it's one game a week or one game a day."

Practice for next season opens Oct. 12. By September, Mapp said, "I should be playing in every pickup game that the team is playing in."

His knee feels good, and he's not in pain, said Mapp, who turns 21 on Thursday. "Now it's just a question of getting my [quadriceps] and hamstring strength back to 100 percent."

Speaking to the media for the first time since March 8, 2001 - the day before Virginia played its first-round game in the ACC tournament at Atlanta - Mapp talked at length about his trials.

"It's been frustrating, definitely," he said. "Any person that has to not do something they love doing - not for one year, but two years - is going to be frustrated."

The worst part, Mapp said, was knowing "I could have helped my team in some way these years I didn't play." Still, he's made contacts outside the basketball program that figure to help him when his career ends.

"This school offers a lot, period," Mapp said. "As far as basketball, as far as academics, as far as opportunities in life."

An economics major, Mapp said he's on track to graduate in December. He'll be listed as a redshirt junior next season but might, if he so chooses, still be playing for U.Va. in 2004-05. Division I athletes have five years in which to complete four seasons of eligibility. In some cases, though, athletes have been granted a sixth year, and the NCAA almost certainly would approve a request from Mapp.

He's interested in earning at least one graduate degree while on scholarship at Virginia and doesn't sound like a guy who's in a hurry to leave.

"I enjoy college, and I enjoy basketball," he said.

Mapp appeared in all 31 games as a freshman in 1999-2000 and averaged 5.3 points and 2.2 assists. He was projected to start at point for the Cavaliers last season, but there's no guarantee he'll start in 2002-03, even if he's close to 100 percent. His competition will include Todd Billet, a transfer from Rutgers who made the all-Big East third team in 2000-01, and Keith Jenifer, who started 15 games as a freshman last season.

"I don't even look at that," Mapp said. His immediate concern is getting cleared for those pickup games next month.

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Kobe Bryant, back on his old turf, ran into a friend around Christmas. Bryant's world revolves around hoops, but his conversation with Jason Christmas revealed that the Lakers' guard knows something about lacrosse, too.

"He told Jason to tell me to represent for Philly," John Christmas, younger brother of Jason, recalled with a smile. "It was really exciting to hear that, now that Kobe's an icon."

Like Bryant, John Christmas was a phenomenal athlete whose feats attracted national acclaim during his days at Lower Merion High, a predominantly white public school near Philadelphia. But Bryant starred in a sport dominated by black players, and his race wasn't part of his storyline.

Not so with Christmas, the son of immigrants from Trinidad. One of lacrosse's all-time greats, former Syracuse Orangeman Jim Brown, is black, but this remains an overwhelmingly white sport.

"This is a kid who could change the face of our sport a little bit," said Dom Starsia, Christmas' coach at the University of Virginia. "He's got the game and charisma to be the person that provides the role model for some inner-city kids who may see the game for the first time."

Christmas, 19, is the first U.Va. freshman to make the all-ACC team since Michael Watson in 1994. He scored on his first shot as a Cavalier, in the opening minute of the Feb. 24 opener against Drexel: a storybook start to what could be a memorable college career.

The 5-9, 175-pound Christmas came to Virginia as perhaps the nation's most touted recruit, and his 25 goals are the fourth-most by a freshman in school history. He also has 15 assists, and with 40 points ranks third at U.Va. behind his fellow starting attackmen: senior All-American Conor Gill (44) and freshman Joe Yevoli (41).

"He's probably a better player than I imagined," Starsia said. Christmas' speed and quickness may cause observers to shake their heads in wonder, but he also has superior stick skills - a must for an attackman, who plays in his team's offensive end - and an uncanny understanding of the game.

He's much more than an extraordinary athlete. "He sees the game at the highest level," Starsia said.

Christmas was virtually a household name in the lacrosse community when he arrived at U.Va., and Starsia worried that his other players might resent the attention lavished on Christmas, whom Sports Illustrated profiled last week. Those concerns proved unfounded. Christmas blended well with his older teammates and forged a strong friendship with Yevoli, the ACC's rookie of the year. (Starsia nominated Christmas for the all-ACC team and Yevoli for the rookie award.)

"I think the John Christmas experience has been better than I had any right to imagine it might be," Starsia said, "from his play on the field to the person he is off the field. It's been positive all the way around. He's just a great kid."

Third-seeded Virginia (10-3) meets sixth-seeded Cornell (10-3) in an NCAA quarterfinal Sunday in Baltimore. The final four, at Rutgers, will be televised nationally, which could provide Christmas a stage on which to play the role Starsia envisions for him.

"I'm sure if there's kids watching the final four on ESPN and they see a black kid score, and everybody else is white, they might keep the channel there instead of switching," Christmas said. "If something like that happens, I'll be glad to accept that role."

Freshman Kyle Harrison, an African-American, is a promising midfielder for top-seeded Johns Hopkins, and Christmas isn't the only black lacrosse player at U.Va. He was the lone black on the team at Lower Merion, however, and some people in his working-class community questioned Christmas' choice of sport.

"There were a lot of people in my neighborhood, a lot of girls, who'd say, 'Who do you play that white-boy sport?'" he said. "But as time went on and they saw how well I was doing, those comments kind of faded."

Christmas followed his older brothers, Jason and Clyde, into the sport. Jason picked up lacrosse at Lower Merion as a way to stay in shape for football, and he later played lax at Villanova. Clyde played lacrosse for two years in high school, but his favorite sport was basketball, in which his teammates included one Kobe Bryant.

The youngest Christmas begin playing the sport as a third-grader. To call him a prodigy would not be overstating things. Starsia first became aware of the unforgettably named scoring machine nearly a decade ago.

"I got a call from an alumnus, and he said, 'I'm at a youth festival right now in Baltimore, and you need to get up here and see this black kid named Christmas,'" recalled Starsia, Virginia's coach since 1993.

"I said, 'What grade is he is in?' He said, 'Fifth grade.' I said, 'I appreciate your interest, but I'm kind of busy, and I'm not really recruiting fifth-graders right now.'"

Starsia didn't hesitate to recruit Christmas later, though, and No. 33's presence bodes well for the future of U.Va.'s program.

May 16, 2002

Fifty-five lacrosse teams opened their springs with dreams of playing at Rutgers Stadium on Memorial Day weekend. Eight dreams still remain, and four tickets will be punched this weekend. The fourth one will be at stake Sunday at 3 p.m., when the No. 3 Virginia Cavaliers battle the No. 6 Cornell Big Red at Homewood Field on the campus of Johns Hopkins. The Big Red is looking for its first trip to the NCAA semifinals since 1988. The game will be broadcast on WTKO (1480 AM) and on www.cornellbigred.com.

Game Notes

Back on Track - After waiting 14 years since its last NCAA tournament victory, Cornell defeated Stony Brook 12-3 last weekend to advance to this weekend's NCAA quarterfinal. Cornell is 20-12 all-time in the NCAA tournament.

Stoned - Cornell used an 8-0 run over the first 40 minutes of its NCAA first-round matchup against Stony Brook to take care of the Seawolves. Billy Fort and Sean Greenhalgh each recorded three-goal efforts, while senior goaltender Justin Cynar made 12 saves.

Splitting Headache - Although Virginia owns a slight 3-2 advantage over Cornell in the all-time series, both teams have two wins in NCAA tournament play against each other. Its most recent matchup, a 17-6 semifinal victory for the Big Red in 1988, was the last NCAA postseason victory for Cornell prior to the win over Stony Brook.

Common Thread - Cornell and Virginia have three common opponents this season - Syracuse, Princeton and Penn State. Each team did the opposite of the other against all three teams. Cornell defeated Penn State 11-9 and Syracuse 15-11, and it lost 12-7 to Princeton. Virginia topped Princeton 13-11 but lost 15-13 to Syracuse and 13-8 to Penn State.

Sweet Sixteen - Cornell is playing in its 16th NCAA tournament, seventh most in Division I lacrosse.

Silver Spoon - This is the 25th anniversary of Cornell's 1977 national championship team. That squad will be honored during the Final Four, which will be held at Rutgers on Memorial Day weekend.

A Perfect '10' - The 1977 squad was led by senior attackman Eamon McEneaney, who scored 79 points on the season. McEneaney, a member of the both the Lacrosse Hall of Fame and the Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame, was killed in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11. His jersey number '10' was retired on April 20 at Schoellkopf Field.

Setting The Pace - The Big Red won the first ever NCAA tournament. Under the tutelage of third-year head coach Richie Moran, Cornell went 13-1 and defeated Maryland 12-6 in the first national championship game in 1971.

Deja Vu - Cornell became the first team in NCAA tournament history to repeat as national champions when it earned both the 1976 and 1977 national championships. It defeated Marlyand 16-13 in overtime of the 1976 NCAA title game, and then it routed Johns Hopkins 16-8 in the 1977 final.

Six Shooter - Cornell has played for the NCAA championship six times, fifth best in Division I lacrosse. Aside from its three championships, the Big Red reached the final in 1978 (Johns Hopkins 13-8), 1987 (Johns Hopkins 11-10) and 1988 (Syracuse 13-8). First Down - Cornell had two players earn first-team All-Ivy honors for the 2002 season. Senior Galen Beers joined unanimous selection Ryan McClay on the squad. McClay was the lone holdover from the 2001 first team. Sean Greenhalgh and Josh Heller were placed on the second team, while Justin Cynar and Billy Fort earned honorable mention.

With Honors - After a season full of honors (more on those later), freshman attacker Sean Greenhalgh was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Year after scoring 34 goals in 13 regular-season games. He scored goals in five of six league games, including a five-goal effort against Dartmouth and a pair of four-goal efforts against Harvard and Penn.

It's Been A While - Cornell hadn't won an Ivy League Rookie of the Year Award since Paul Schimoler took home the honor in 1986.

New Blood - In the win over then-No. 1 Syracuse, Cornell got 10 of its 15 goals from freshmen. Attackman Sean Greenhalgh had a career-high six goals, while midfielder Justin Redd had four goals.

Green Acres - Sean Greenhalgh had the finest week of a brilliant freshman season when Cornell entertained both the Orangemen and the Dartmouth Big Green. He set the freshman single-game record with six goals in the win over Syracuse. Against Dartmouth, he scored five more goals to set the freshman single-season record, previously held by Matt Wise (29 goals in 1995). After scoring three goals in his NCAA tournament debut against Stony Brook, he currently leads the team with 34 goals.

And the Winner Is - Sean Greenhalgh swept the weekly awards after his 11-goal performance over that span. He earned his third consecutive and fourth overall Ivy League Rookie of the Week award in five tries. He shared the Ivy League Player of the Week award, his first, with Princeton's Ryan Boyle. He was also named national player of the week by Inside Lacrosse.

Multiplicity - Sean Greenhalgh has scored at least one goal in 12 of the 13 games he's played and has scored multiple goals in nine contests. He already has outings of one, two, three, four, five and six goals.

Playing the Percentages - The freshman sensation hasn't wasted many shots during his record-breaking season. Greenhalgh leads the team with a .544 shooting percentage (37-for-68), and he scored his 11 goals during the Syracuse/Dartmouth week on 15 shots (.733). As a team, Cornell is shooting .279.

Last Bit Of Green - Sean Greenhalgh led the Ivy League in overall goals (34) and was second to Sean Hartofilis in Ivy League goals (15/17).

Head of the Class - The Class of 2002 is 34-18 so far and has already made one trip to the NCAA tournament (a 14-12 loss to Georgetown). It also won twice against top-ranked Syracuse at home and is 20-5 on the East Hill. The last senior class that could say it played in two NCAA tournaments was the Class of 1990, which played for both the 1987 and 1988 titles. That was also the last class to play in the NCAA quarterfinals.

Home Cooking - The Big Red is averaging 13.4 goals per game at Schoellkopf Field. Away from the East Hill, Cornell averages 9.2 goals per game.

National Defense - Cornell currently owns the top-ranked defense in Division I lacrosse, allowing 6.71 goals per game. Virginia enters the game with the 18th-ranked defense, allowing 8.62 goals per game.

The Best Defense is a Good Offense - The Virginia Cavaliers enter Saturday's game with the fifth-ranked offense in the country, scoring 12.77 goals per game. Cornell's offense, which scores 10.57 goals per game, is ranked 17th.

Cyn O' The Times - Senior goaltender Justin Cynar is second in the country in goals-against average, allowing 6.76 goals per game. He allowed 6.04 goals in Ivy League games, and he has limited six opponents this season to five goals or fewer. His best performance came last weekend, when he limited Stony Brook to three goals.

Justin Time - Justin Cynar has had his best performances in the biggest games. As a sophomore, he led Cornell to a 13-12 victory over top-ranked Syracuse with 15 saves, and he kept the Big Red in its NCAA tournament contest with Georgetown by making a career-best 19 saves. As a junior, he was arguably his best ever in a brilliant 15-save performance in a 7-4 loss to Princeton. This season, he again led Cornell to a defeat of a top-ranked Syracuse squad with 11 saves, and he has made a total of 26 saves over the last two weekends in a pair of must-win game against Virginia.

One and Done - Cornell knocked off the No. 1 team in the country, Syracuse, on April 9 at Schoellkopf Field. The 15-11 win marked the second time in three years that Cornell has defeated the top-ranked Orangemen at Schoellkopf Field.

Big Redd - Justin Redd had the finest game of his career against Syracuse, scoring four goals and adding two assists. He now stands second on the team with 15 goals, and he has scored a goal in all but one game (Yale). He also scored twice against Princeton, giving him six goals against the teams that met for the 2001 NCAA championship.

Seeing Redd - Justin Redd has scored at least one goal in a team-high 12 games. The only teams that limited the Towson, Md., native scoreless was Penn State and Stony Brook.

Fort Worth - Senior Billy Fort was one of the top playmakers for Cornell during the 2002 season and ended with a team-best 18 assists. Like many of his teammates, he had one of his finest performances in the win over Syracuse and ended the game with a team-best three assists. Last weekend against Stony Brook, Fort carried the offense early and scored a game-high three goals.

Face It - Senior faceoff specialist Addison Sollog has a .570 winning percentage this season (158-of-277). He won 21-of-23 faceoffs in a 10-9 win against Colgate and eight of 10 in the decisive third quarter against top-ranked Syracuse. Against Stony Brook, Sollog won 13 of 18 draws.

This Defense Never Rests - Cornell outscored Harvard 9-0 in the second half of an 11-4 win over the Crimson on April 6. In its first three Ivy League wins this season, the Big Red kept its opponents off the scoreboard for two full halves (first against Yale, second against Harvard) and limited Penn to one goal in the second half. In all three games, the opposing team scored four goals. Cornell also held Stony Brook scoreless for a full half, the third time this season that has occurred.

More Defense - Preseason first-team All-American and two-time first-team All-Ivy selection Ryan McClay limited Syracuse's Josh Coffman, the sixth-ranked player in the nation in points per game at that point, to one assist and zero goals in the win over the Orangemen.

Last Defense - Cornell has limited six opponents to five goals or fewer for the first time since the 1987 season, when Cornell also played for the national title.

Captain America - Cornell had two preseason first-team All-America selections in senior goaltender Justin Cynar and junior defenseman Ryan McClay. It also had a pair of preseason third-teamers in senior faceoff specialist Addison Sollog and senior longstick midfielder Josh Heller.

More America - Junior Ryan McClay will compete for the U.S. World Championship this summer in Australia. He is one of seven current collegiate players to play for the U.S. team this year. Senior goaltender Justin Cynar will serve as an alternate for the team.

You're Grounded - The Big Red prides itself in winning ground balls, and has earned a 530-378 advantage in that category this season. Cornell's three preseason All-Americans lead the Big Red in ground balls: third-teamer Addison Sollog has 71, first-teamer Ryan McClay has 68 and third-teamer Josh Heller has 53 respectively. McClay had a game-high nine in the win over Syracuse. Cornell has earned more ground balls in 11 of 14 games, and is 10-0 in those contests.

Leading Men - The Big Red never trailed Syracuse in its 15-11 victory over the Orangemen. There were four ties, including the final one at 8-8 with 9:20 remaining in the fourth quarter. A 15-yard blast from Galen Beers with 8:28 remaining in the quarter gave the Big Red a lead it would never relinquish.

Closing Strong - Cornell has outscored its opponents 85-55 in the second half of games this season. In the third quarter alone, Cornell owns a 46-27 advantage.

Quarterly Report - Cornell is at least a +10 in each quarter this season, although it is a -1 in overtime. In its lone overtime game of the season, Brown's Chas Gessner ended Cornell's dreams for an 18th league championship with a double overtime score.

Hat Trick Trio - In Cornell's 11-9 victory over Penn State, three Cornellians recorded hat tricks. Seniors Galen Beers and Billy Fort joined freshman Sean Greenhalgh in three-goal efforts at Happy Valley, Pa.

Not So Happy For Everybody - In its home finale, that same Penn State squad knocked off Virginia 13-8.

Sands of the Hourglass - Junior midfielder Frank Sands scored the first game-winning goal of his career when he tallied a late goal in Cornell's 10-8 victory over Colgate. That victory was Cornell's first of the season.

Spoon Fed - Sophomore attackman Ben Spoonhower scored each of his four goals on the man advantage.

Coming Up Roses - Ian Rosenberger recorded his first multiple-goal game last weekend, as he scored twice against the Seawolves of Stony Brook. He is the only player on the team with more than one goal (seven) and zero assists.

Taking Advantage - Cornell had decent success in the man-up this season, scoring 17 times on 61 opportunities. In the regular-season finale at Hobart, the Big Red scored two goals with the man advantage.

Killing Time - The Big Red has been even more successful killing penalties. It has allowed only eight goals in 44 opportunities for an .818 success rate. That mark is the fourth-best in Division I.

Who Let The (Bull)Dogs Out? - Yale's 15-13 victory over Princeton ended the Tigers' 37-game Ivy winning streak. The loss kept Princeton from eclipsing Cornell's Ivy record 39 straight wins, set in the mid 1970s. The Tigers would have achieved the record in the win over Penn. The record is now safe until at least 2008.

The Crystal Ball - The winner of this matchup will face the winner of the Syracuse/Duke contest in the national semifinal next Saturday at Rutgers University. Cornell is 1-0 against the Orangemen this season, while it did not face Duke. Of the four teams remaining on the other side of the bracket, Cornell has lost once this season to both Georgetown and Princeton.

Colleges playing cat-and-mouse game with prospects