Story Links
April 19, 2006
The pre-game ceremony, the flowers, and the countless pictures with family, friends, and teammates created a different atmosphere than usual on the 3rd ranked Cavaliers’ 4th year night. But certain aspects of the game remained the same: For one last regular season game at Klöckner Field, the tight-knit 4th years led Virginia to a win.
The seven Cavalier 4th years propelled Virginia to a 5-0 lead against George Mason within the first five minutes of the game, and Virginia held on for a 13-9 victory. “It was definitely very important for us to come out and play well on senior day,” said 4th year goalie Ginger Miles. “It’s always a big game and really emotional, and I think our emotions showed in the first half.”
A vital part of Virginia’s 10 consecutive bids to the NCAA Championships, the Class of 2006 has put together a run of three straight trips to the NCAA Division I national title game, including an NCAA Championship in 2004, a feat that places them among the elite classes in the history of the sport. “Without them coming in and fighting to get us in the championship game their first year, I’m not sure how we would have done in their second year when we won the whole thing,” said Virginia Head Coach Julie Myers. “They were certainly the class that put us over the edge. They were the motor and the engine that we really needed.”
The motor for these seven Cavaliers runs constantly, as they lead their teammates not only during games, but also on the practice field and in the classroom. “They are the kids who go hard in practice and make sure that everyone on the practice field is ready to work and create some success,” said Coach Myers. “All seven of our fourth year kids earned a 3.0 or above last semester, and three of them had a 3.8 or better. Everything they do, they do really well. They’re competitive, but in a really generous and caring way.”
The group credits their friendship for much of their success. “Throughout the four years, the greatest thing about our class is that we’ve always stuck together,” said Miles. “Six of us live together and Chelsea is right around the corner, so we get along very well.”
That closeness has blossomed since Ginger Miles wrote her first email to the group during the recruiting process in high school. Fellow 4th year Chelsea Metz paraphrased the memorable introduction as, “`My name is Ginger, I like long walks on the beach, cheese, watching Friends, and candlelight dinners.'”
One staple of the girls’ bonding that they have enjoyed over the past four years is “Sunday Funday.” “We invite everybody over and barbeque,” said 4th year Kim Connors. “We watch football and eat chili on Sundays. As a class, I think that we’ve done a good job sticking together and keeping the team cohesive.”
A key component to the 4th years’ camaraderie and the Cavaliers’ overall success is Nikki Lieb, a midfielder from Villanova, Pennsylvania. Lieb was recently named as one of 21 players on the watchlist for the Tewaaraton Trophy, the award that goes to the premiere lacrosse player in the nation. In her time at UVA, the psychology major has twice earned first-team All-American honors, has twice been selected to the NCAA and ACC All-Tournament teams, and has scored 76 career points on 47 goals and 29 assists. On the international level, Lieb advanced to the third round of the 2005 USA World Cup Team tryouts. “Nikki came in to Virginia as a soccer/lacrosse kid,” said Coach Myers. “For her to walk away from soccer after her first year made all the difference to the world not only to her lacrosse game, but also to our program. It was a great decision for her in terms of where it was able to get us. She’s just one of the most athletic, most all-around players we’ve had in the history of our program. She’s a great kid, hard worker, and smart as well.”
Tyler Leachman, from Bethesda, Maryland, has moved up the ranks this year to become–as of the George Mason game–the 4th leading scorer in UVA history, with 243 career points, 181 goals, and 62 assists. Leachman, who anchors the Wahoo attack, leads Virginia in scoring through 15 games in 2006 with 69 points on 42 goals and 27 assists, has been named ACC Player of the Week twice, and is also on the Tewaaraton Trophy Watchlist. In 2005, womenslacrosse.com and insidelacrosse.com named Leachman a first-team All-American, and her 82 points also garnered her All-ACC honors. As a 2nd year, the psychology major ranked second on the team in scoring with 53 goals and 11 assists for 64 points. “Tyler has just had a phenomenal four years for us,” said Coach Myers. “She’s got a nose for the goal and can get any ball out of any sticky situation. She’s one of the hardest working and incredibly smart kids that I’ve been around.”
Chelsea Metz, a student in the Commerce School with a concentration in finance, started against George Mason on fourth year night and has appeared in seven games this year, starting two. In her career, Metz, who hails from Berwyn, Pennsylvania, has seen action in 23 games. In high school, USL named her a first-team All-American in ’01 and ’02, and a second-team All-American in ’00. “Chelsea is just a hard worker, great kid, and has a huge heart,” said Coach Myers. “She really makes sure that the team is doing the right thing. She’s the heart of the team and really makes sure that we’re taking care of business.”
Ginger Miles, a goalie from Hyattsville, Maryland, has started all 15 games this year and allowed a miniscule 7.6 goals per game, which ranks 7th nationally through the Mason game. For her career, the government major has over 300 career saves, which places her in elite company in Virginia lore. Following this year’s upset victory against Duke in Durham, Miles was named the National Player of the Week by womenslacrosse.com as well as the ACC Player of the Week by the conference. In 2005, Miles started in all 21 games she played, and her 179 saves ranks sixth all-time in a single season at UVA. “Ginger came to us late in the recruiting process,” said Coach Myers. “She probably never thought she’d start for us, and here she is, a two year starter for us and doing a great job. It’s a great success story.”
After playing in all 22 contests last year and starting eight games in 2004, Julie Hauser has started all 15 games this year in the defense for the Cavaliers. Hauser, a sociology major from Alexandria, Virginia, also saw action in nine games as a first year and came into UVA as a two-time USL All-American. “Julie is another kid who has just gotten so much better every year in every game,” said Coach Myers. “She’s been a great asset to us in defense and in midfield transition as well.”
Kim Connors, a midfielder from St. David’s, Pennsylvania, has started in every game since her arrival at UVA. In 2005, the psychology major earned second-team All-American honors from womenslacrosse.com and third-team honors from IWLCA/US Lacrosse. For her career, Connors has scored 81 points on 45 goals and 36 assists. “Kim Connors is one of the toughest competitors our program has ever had,” said Myers. “From her first day on the field to now, her work ethic and competitiveness has set the standard for all of us to work towards. She has been absolutely critical to our success over the last four years and a player that will leave a void for us to fill in the years to come.”
An ACL tear in the fifth game of the season has kept team captain Meredith Lazarus off the field for much of this year, but it hasn’t stopped her from providing leadership from the sidelines. The Commerce School student with a concentration in finance started 21 of 22 games last year, anchoring the solid Cavalier defense in route to third-team All-American honors. As a first year, the Stuart, Florida native started 17 of 22 games and was named to the national rookie team by womenslacrosse.com. “Meredith is easily one of the smartest kids I’ve ever seen,” said Coach Myers. “I think she has a 3.9 GPA, and it’s just effortless. If you ever met her, you would never know it, she seems totally normal, but there’s really nothing academically normal about her, which makes her neat. This is her second year now losing a season to an ACL tear. She could have been a first-team All-American a couple of times for us, but her knees just keep getting in the way. The way that she goes after her rehab and takes care of all the little things really just makes all the difference for our program.”
“From a lacrosse standpoint, we’ve had a great run,” said Miles. “We’ve been to the national championship three times in a row, and that’s the ultimate goal. We want to get there again. We came in and we got that far, and we’ve never expected anything less. We have really high expectations, and I think that collectively as a class we want to continue those and pass them onto the younger classes.”
No matter whether or not the 4th years lead Virginia to another National Championship this spring, they will be remembered for their contributions to the UVA community off the field, as well as the memories they have created on it.