Men Land Three on All-ACC Squad

Story Links

April 28, 2005

Baltimore, Md. – The University of Virginia placed three players on the 11-man All-Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Lacrosse squad announced at the league championship banquet in Baltimore, Md. Junior attackman Matt Ward was one of only four repeat selections from last season, while senior longstick midfielder Rob Bateman and junior defenseman Michael Culver were honored for the first time.

Ward is Virginia’s leading scorer for the second year in a row with 39 points (30g, 9a). He has scored at least one goal in the last 16 games dating back to last season and has tallied five goals twice this spring (Drexel, Towson). He leads the team with nine multi-goal games and is the top 20 in school history in goals and total points.

Bateman transferred from Penn State and is playing at UVa as a graduate student in 2005. He is considered of the top long stick midfielders in the nation and will rate serious consideration for first-team All-America honors. He has snared 36 ground balls, second among conference long stick middies, and added a goal and seven assists on offense. He was a second-team All-ECAC selection in 2002 and 2003.

Culver spearheads a defense that is ranked fourth in the nation, allowing an average of 7.00 goals per game. He held Maryland’s Joe Walters, North Carolina’s Jed Prossner and Johns Hopkins’ Peter LeSueur to just one goal each this season. Culver ranks second among ACC close defensemen with a career-high 31 ground balls.

Virginia faces Maryland Friday night in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament at M&T Bank Stadium. The game is expected to start at approximately 8:30 pm. The game is being broadcast on WINA AM 1070.

The complete team is below.

Rob Bateman, UVa, Sr., LSM
Michael Culver, UVa, Jr., D
Matt Danowski, Duke, So., A
Aaron Fenton, Duke, Sr, G
Zack Greer, Duke, Fr., A
Tony McDevitt, Duke, So., D
Bill McGlone, Maryland, Jr., M
Jed Prossner, North Carolina, Sr., A
Joe Walters, Maryland, Jr., A
Matt Ward, UVa, Jr., A
Matt Zash, Duke, Jr., M

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Matt Danowski, Duke

FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Zack Greer, Duke

COACH OF THE YEAR
Mike Pressler, Duke