Men's Lacrosse Hosts Bellarmine in Final Regular Season Contest
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April 21, 2006
Charlottesville, Va. –
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Game 12
#1 Virginia vs. Bellarmine
April 22, 2006 • 1 pm
Klöckner Stadium • Charlottesville, Va.
Broadcast Information–There is no radio coverage of this game.
Game Overview
The top-ranked Cavaliers conclude the regular season with a Senior Day match-up against the Bellarmine Knights at Klöckner Stadium.
Among those playing their final home game include All-Americans Michael Culver, Kyle Dixon and Matt Ward, as well as co-captain J.J. Morrissey.
Virginia is the only undefeated team in the country with an 11-0 record. The undefeated start is the longest in school history, while the 11-game winning streak is the Cavaliers’ longest since a school-record 13-game run in 2000.
Virginia boasts the nation’s top-ranked offense, averaging 15.55 goals per game. Seven players have recorded at least 20 points, led by Ward with 38 (21g, 17a). This is the first time since 1997 UVa has had as many as seven 20-point scorers.
Senior midfielder Matt Poskay, another playing his final home game, leads the team with 24 goals, one of four Cavaliers with 20+ goals. This is the first time since 2003 Virginia has had as many 20-goal scorers. That season six Cavaliers scored at least 20 times.
Bellarmine is a second-year program located in Louisville, Ky. The Knights are 6-7 this season and come into the game with a season-high three-game winning streak. During their streak they have defeated Holy Cross (12-11 in overtime), Marist (10-4) and Robert Morris (9-6). The Knights are well traveled this season–this is their seventh road game in a row. They have played three overtime games, winning once.
Senior attackman Garett Kikot is Bellarmine’s leading scorer with 24 goals and 17 assists for 41 total points. He scored 53 times last season. He is fourth among active players with 123 career goals.
This game features a match-up of 100-goal scorers as Matt Ward has tallied 118 career goals for Virginia.
ACC Tournament Up Next
With the ACC slate of games complete, the pairings are set for the ACC Tournament next weekend at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
No. 2 seed Maryland will face No. 3 seed North Carolina in Friday’s lone semifinal game at 8 pm.
The top-seeded Cavaliers play the winner of the semifinal game in the championship game Sunday afternoon at 3:30 pm. The title game will be televised regionally on Fox Sports Net South, SunSports, Comcast SportsNet, New England Sports Network (NESN).
Seniors Make Final Klöckner Appearance
The Bellarmine game marks the final regular season Klöckner Stadium appearance for several Cavaliers. Those playing in their final home game include captains Michael Culver, J.J. Morrissey and Matt Ward, as well as G Doug Brody, D Patrick Buchanan, M Kyle Dixon, M Charlie Glazer, M Jared Little, LSM Chris Ourisman, D Matt Paquet and M Matt Poskay. M Foster Gilbert has a year of eligibility remaining and is expected to return next season.
This group of players have played key roles in leading the Cavaliers to two final four berths, including the 2003 national championship. The 2003 squad won a school-record 15 games on the way to the title.
They also won the ACC championship in 2003 and have been invited to the NCAA Tournament twice (and expect to receive a bid this season).
Green Grass of Klöckner Bodes Well
The Bellarmine game is Virginia’s final home game of the year at Klöckner Stadium. The Cavaliers have found playing at Klöckner is quite to their liking.
Virginia is riding a 14-game winning streak at Klöckner Stadium dating back to the 2004 season. Last year the Cavaliers were 7-0 at Klöckner, their best record ever there. This season they have won all five games.
Overall Virginia is 61-12 (.836) at Klöckner since moving there in 1993.
Nation’s Longest Home Winning Streak
Last year’s national champion Johns Hopkins got a lot of attention for its 37-game home winning streak. But the attention ended last month following a loss to Princeton.
Virginia now owns the nation’s longest home winning streak. The Cavaliers’ winning streak has now reached a school-record 17 games, which is also tied for the fifth-longest home winning streak in ACC history.
The Cavaliers’ last loss at home was to Princeton 8-7 on March 13, 2004.The list of the longest ACC home winning streaks is below.
School, years Wins
1. North Carolina, 1990-94 28
2. North Carolina, 1980-84 27
3. Maryland, 1973-77 25
4. Maryland, 1954-57 22
5. Virginia, 2004-pres. 17
Maryland, 1962-64 17
Duke, 1986-88 17
The Series vs. the Knights
This is the first meeting between the two schools. Bellarmine is Virginia’s only first-time opponent this season.
Bellarmine is in only its second year of Division I play and is one of three schools playing as Independents this season. Curiously Virginia has defeated the other two–Johns Hopkins and Syracuse–at home this year.
Virginia has won its last two games against first-time opponents since the last loss (Air Force 2004). Since 1970 Virginia is 29-2 against first-time opponents. (The losses are to 1978 N.C. State and Air Force in 2004.)
Sharing a Common Opponent
Virginia and Bellarmine have two opponents in common this season–Denver and VMI.
The Cavaliers defeated Denver 13-7 in the second game of the season, while the Pioneers defeated Bellarmine 13-5 two weeks ago.
Both teams beat VMI; the Cavaliers by a 21-4 margin on Feb. 28 and Bellarmine 13-8 four days later.
Hoo’ll Lead the Offense Today?
Virginia features one of the most balanced offenses in the country with a host of players capable of putting up big numbers in any given game.
Eleven different players have led the team in goals and there doesn’t seem to be any pattern as to who might lead on any particular occasion.
Ben Rubeor led the team in goals in the first two games, but missed the next two due to an injury. Since his return he has been the leader three more times (Syracuse, Johns Hopkins, Maryland).
Ward led three times in a four-game span (Stony Brook, Syracuse, Princeton), but was held without a goal by Towson and hasn’t led since the Princeton game.
Poskay scored three goals each four times in an eight-game stretch, leading in three of them (Drexel, Syracuse, Towson).
Thompson led the way in three straight games–VMI, Syracuse, Princeton–but has tallied only four times since.
Freshman middie Steve Giannone led in two midweek games–VMI, Mount St. Mary’s. Rookie attackman Garrett Billings was the goal-scoring leader against Towson with a season-high three goals. Billings also led the last time out with a career-high five scores vs. North Carolina.
Freshman attackman Danny Glading shared the scoring honors with Rubeor against Johns Hopkins, the first time he was high man.
Virginia Ranked First in USILA Poll
Virginia sits atop the USILA coaches poll for the fifth consecutive week this week. The Cavaliers have an 11-0 record, the best record in school history. This is the longest UVa has been ranked No. 1 in the coaches poll since a five-week stay in 1996.
Under head coach Dom Starsia, UVa is 17-5 when ranked #1 in the coaches poll. The Cavaliers are 8-0 in home games as the top-ranked team. Based on available records going back to 1971, Virginia has never lost at home as the No. 1 team.
Defense Among Nation’s Best
The Virginia offense has been electric this season and leads the nation with an average of 15.55 goals per game. The defense is determined not to be outdone and has been especially stingy this spring. The Cavalier defenders–led by close d-men Michael Culver, Ricky Smith and Matt Kelly and LSMs Mike Timms and Chris Ourisman, as well as stopper Kip Turner-spearhead the nation’s ninth-ranked defense. The Cavaliers relinquish an average of 7.18 goals per game. Only Syracuse (15) and North Carolina (13) have scored more than seven goals vs. Virginia this season.
VMI and Maryland have scored their fewest goals of the season vs. Virginia, while Denver, Drexel, Stony Brook, Princeton and Towson all have their second-lowest output of the season against the Cavaliers. Of the 11 opponents this season, only Syracuse and North Carolina have scored more than their season average.
UVa is one of only three teams (along with Cornell and Hofstra) ranked in the top nine in the country in both defense and offense.
Poskay’s Streak Reaches 16 Games
Matt Poskay is the nation’s second-leading scorer among midfielders with 24 goals. Hartford’s Josh Wasson-McQuigge leads the way with 30 goals.
Poskay has scored at least three goals on five occasions this season and led the team three times.
He has also scored in every game this season to run his streak to 16 consecutive games with a goal. That is Virginia’s longest streak since Matt Ward had an 18-game run in 2004-05. Overall, Poskay has scored at least once in 26 of the last 27 games (Duke 2005 was his only shutout).
His streak is the longest by a Cavalier midfielder since David Curry scored in 22 straight games in 1996-97.
Dixon is 40-40 Man
In baseball much is made of a player who combines the strength to hit home runs and the speed to steal bases, specifically hitting 40 home runs and stealing 40 bases in a season. In the entire history of baseball, there are only three members of the “40-40 Club” (Jose Canseco-1988, Barry Bonds-1996, Alex Rodriguez-1998).
In lacrosse a “40-40” midfielder is nearly as rare, as most middies are either scorers or passers, but rarely both.
Senior Kyle Dixon is one of the rare midfielders who can do both. Last year he was one of 10 ACC midfielders with 10 goals and 10 assists, and finished second among league mids with 17 assists.
This year his 13 assists are tied for fifth in the country by a midfielder, while his 23 total points are tied for 23rd.
He is one of only 12 midfielders with at least 10 goals and 10 assists this spring.
With 45 career goals and 49 career assists, he is one of only three “40-40 Midfielders” in school history. That list is below.
Player, years goals assists
1. Scott Gerham, 1981-84 45 57
2. Chris Rotelli, 2000-03 85 41
3. Kyle Dixon, 2003-pres. 45 49
Cavaliers are Nation’s Top Offense
Virginia comes into this game ranked No. 1 in the nation in scoring with an average of 15.55 goals/g.
The Cavaliers have scored 171 goals in 11 games, their most at this stage since they scored a whopping 210 goals in 1997. Overall, it is the fifth-most they have ever scored at this point in a season.
The Cavaliers have scored at least 12 goals in 10 of 11 games, including at least 20 three times. The last time UVa scored 20+ at least three times occurred in 1999 season when they did it three times.
The offense features several of the top scorers in the country, led by senior All-American Matt Ward. Ward is tied for ninth nationally with 38 points (21g, 17a), while sophomore Ben Rubeor is tied for 15th with 34 points (21g, 13a) despite missing two games with an injury.
Garrett Billings is fourth in points among freshmen with 29, while Danny Glading is not far behind in eighth place with 27 points.
Billings has scored 22 goals and ranks third behind Hofstra’s Tom Dooley (28) and Siena’s Matt Girsh (27). Glading is tied for 12th with 15 goals.Glading is tied for third among rookies with 12 assists, while Gavin Gill is tied for fifth with 10.
Morrissey Unheralded Standout
Last season Inside Lacrosse magazine called short-stick defensive midfielder the “most important position in lacrosse” in a story about the seldom-noticed contributions of those playing the position.
Virginia’s J.J. Morrissey certainly falls into this category. Last season he could have easily been named the team’s most valuable player (it went to Matt Ward). He scooped a career-high 51 ground balls to rank sixth in the ACC (3.40/g), scored six goals and assisted on seven more.
This season he has been named a team captain in recognition of his leadership skills. Once again he is a demon on ground balls, ranking third in the ACC with an average of 3.91 per game. Deadly in transition, he has scored four goals and has six assists.
Morrissey has led the team in ground balls three times this season and tied his career high with eight GBs vs. Syracuse.
Starsia Wins 150th at Virginia
In his 14th year at the helm of the Virginia program, head coach Dom Starsia has guided his Cavalier squads to many outstanding achievements, including two national championships.
Starsia’s list of accomplishments grew a bit last season when he passed former head coach Jim “Ace” Adams for the most wins in program history. Starsia won his 150th game at UVa with last month’s 12-6 win over Johns Hopkins. He now has a 152-54 (.738) record at UVa.
In addition to setting the school record for most wins, Starsia is tied for seventh all-time (as best we can tell) in coaching wins at the Division I level. (This list includes only time spent coaching at the DI level, which is why Dave Urick, Carl Runk and several others are not listed.)
He is also one of three coaches to win 100+ games at two different schools. In addition to his 152 UVa wins, he won 101 games at Brown from 1983-92. Jack Emmer won 100+ games at both Washington & Lee and Army, while Urick topped the century mark at Hobart and Georgetown.
The list of the winningest all-time Division I coaches is below.
Coach, school(s), years Wins
1. Jack Emmer, Cortland, W&L, Army, 1970-2005 326
2. Dick Garber, UMass, 1955-90 300
3. Roy Simmons, Jr., Syracuse, 1971-98 290
4. Jim Adams, Army, Penn, UVa, 1958-92 284
5. Glenn Thiel, UVa, Penn State, 1970-pres. 272
6. Richie Moran, Cornell, 1969-97 257
7. Dom Starsia, Brown, UVa, 1983-pres. 253
Roy Simmons, Sr., Syracuse, 1931-70 253
Glazer is ACC Faceoff Leader
One of the biggest question marks coming into the season for head coach Dom Starsia and his staff was who was going to replace four-year starter Jack deVilliers in the faceoff circle.
Senior Charlie Glazer and junior Drew Thompson have been the team’s top-two draw men, but with Thompson on the field for both offense and defense, Glazer has had plenty of chances to ply his specialty.
Given the most extended playing time of his career, Glazer has been one of the team’s most pleasant surprises with his excellent play. He is ninth in the country (ACC leader) in faceoff winning percentage with a 62.1 mark (95 of 153). He is also 20th nationally (once again the ACC leader) in ground balls, averaging 4.82 per game.
Glazer got the first starting assignment of his career in the opening game against Drexel and played a big role in the Cavaliers’ 15-7 win. He won 11 of 15 attempts (.733) and finished with four ground balls.
He had an even better performance in the win over Stony Brook, going up against Jim Astea, who was 12th last year in winning percentage. Glazer won 12 of 14 attempts (.857) as Virginia built a big lead and won 17-4. He also grabbed a career-high 10 ground balls to lead the team.
One of the keys in wins over Syracuse and Princeton was an ability to gain and maintain possession, particularly when it came to faceoffs.
In the win over the `Cuse, UVa outscored the Orange 8-1 in the second quarter to seize control. Glazer won 14 of 24 draws overall, including five of eight in that period, when the Cavaliers had possession virtually the entire period.
His ability to win draws was significant in the Cavaliers’ comeback from a 4-1 deficit to down Princeton 7-6. He won eight of 12 attempts, including all three in the third quarter when UVa mounted its comeback. Glazer also finished with a game-high seven ground balls.
Glazer had a perfect game vs. Mount St. Mary’s (11 of 11) and was excellent going up against Greg Peyser from Johns Hopkins, winning 10 of 17 draws.
Rubeor on Recent Tear
Ben Rubeor was one of the top freshmen in the nation a year ago and made an immediate impact in the line-up. He led ACC freshmen with 16 assists and was second with 18 goals and 34 points.
Like his linemates Matt Ward, Danny Glading and Garrett Billings, he is having an exceptional spring despite being sidelined for two games due to an injury.
In the season’s first game against Drexel he led the way with three goals and two assists and was high man the next game with four goals and two assists vs. Denver. He injured his ankle late in that contest and missed the next two games (Stony Brook, VMI).
The rugged sophomore returned to action against Syracuse as if he had not missed any time. Once again he led the attack with three goals and two assists in a 20-15 win.
Rubeor scored what proved to be the game-winning goal in a 7-6 win over Princeton, interestingly enough on his 20th birthday. He followed that with a relatively quiet game against Mount St. Mary’s with two goals and an assist.
Playing just minutes from his home, Rubeor led the way with five points (2g, 3a) in the 14-7 win over Towson several weeks ago.
He scored a game-high four goals in the 15-5 win over Maryland and was named ACC Player of the Week.
Against North Carolina in the last game he assisted on three goals despite being a little under the weather.
The second-leading scorer on the team, he is averaging 3.78 points per game and ranked ninth in the country.
Ground Balls Key to Victory
One of the goals of the Virginia coaching staff every game is winning the ground ball battle.
Last season the Cavaliers were exceptional and averaged 44.8 ground balls per game, up seven from the year before, and almost six more than the opposition. They also won the ground ball war in 11 of 15 games.
This year’s group of Cavaliers have done their best Brooks Robinson impersonation, sucking up ground balls at a rate of 49.7 per game. Against Mount St. Mary’s, they gobbled up 67 and have topped 50 four other times. They also have a ground ball margin of 14.3 gb/g.
The Cavaliers have won 54 of their last 59 games (5-0 this year) dating back to 1998 when snapping up at least 50 GBs.
Ward Moves Up ACC Goals List
Senior attackman Matt Ward has earned his way onto a select list of Virginia’s all-time greats. He has led the Cavaliers in goals the last two seasons and has notched at least one in 49 of 56 games in his career.
He scored a trio of goals in the win over Denver on Feb. 20 to become only the ninth player in school history to score at least 100 in a career; he is fourth with 118. Ward is also sixth among active Division I players.
His place on the ACC’s career goals list is shown below.
Player, school, years goals
11. Josh Dennis, Duke, 1987-90 129
12. Bert Fett, North Carolina, 1972-75 128
13. Frank Urso, Maryland, 1973-76 127
14. Pete Worstell, Maryland, 1978-81 126
15. T.J. Durnan, Duke, 1997-2000 125
16. Scott Hochstadt, Maryland, 1996-99 121
17. Matt Ward, Virginia, 2003-06 118
Rookie Production
Dom Starsia knew when he signed this year’s class of freshmen that he was getting some talented players. However he might not have anticipated getting quite the production he’s gotten so far from this precocious group of youngsters.
Two rookies start (A Danny Glading, D Matt Kelly), while the several others see lots of playing time.
Glading has scored 15 goals and added 12 assists while starting every game. His 27 total points are eighth in the country among freshmen, while his 12 assists are tied for third.
Kelly has started every game as well and usually draws the opponent’s third attackman; he has 19 ground balls.
Canadian attackman Garrett Billings has started several games and is the fourth attackman when he doesn’t start. His 29 total points are fourth most by a freshman, while his 22 goals are third.
Steve Giannone runs on the second midfield unit and has tallied seven goals and added two assists. He was the team’s leading scorer against Mount St. Mary’s with three goals and an assist.
Gavin Gill has played in eight games as a reserve on attack. He has scored just once, but is fifth in the country among freshmen with 10 assists.In addition, the top longstick midfielder is redshirt freshman Mike Timms. He second among the team’s LSMs with 19 ground balls.
Overall, this year’s freshmen have scored 51 goals (29.8% of team total) and had 35 assists (30.2%) and are the most productive freshmen since the 2002 newcomers scored 84 goals and 26 assists.
Poskay Eyes Top 10 Midfield List
Matt Poskay set a national high school record with 362 goals during his storied prep career in New Jersey. Still there was some skepticism from some corners about his ability to be a big time scorer on the collegiate level. But Dom Starsia never had any reservations and his confidence in Poskay’s skills has been justified.
Poskay scored 29 goals last season, fourth in the nation among midfielders and tied for 10th all-time by a UVa middie.This season he is the nation’s second-leading midfielder scorer with 24 goals, which is tied for 13th overall.
Poskay also owns a 16-game streak with at least one goal dating back to last season, the longest streak on the team.
One of the most prolific scoring midfielders in school history, he is sixth on UVa’s goals list by a middie. A look at the list is below.
Player, years goals
1. Pete Eldredge, 1969-72 92
2. Chris Rotelli, 2000-03 85
3. Greg Traynor, 1992-95 82
4. Jay Jalbert, 1997-2000 78
5. Andy Kraus, 1987-89, `91 75
6. Matt Poskay, 2003-pres. 71
Billings, Glading are Top Rookies
Danny Glading was named the top recruit in the nation by Inside Lacrosse in the fall, while classmate Garrett Billings was considered the magazine’s “Canadian X-Factor.”
Glading had a stellar high school career at Georgetown Prep and finished his career as the school’s all-time assists leader with 156. As a senior last year he scored 55 goals and finished with 93 points and was named the Washington Post’s Player of the Year.
Billings is a relative newcomer to the field game, but is a prolific scorer indoors, where he starred for the Burnaby Lakers club that won the Minto Cup in 2004 and `05. Last year he won the scoring title with 52 goals, 52 assists and 104 points and was named to the first all-star team.
The pair has given an already potent offense an added kick this season.Billings is third on the team in scoring with 29 points (22g, 7a). He notched two goals and added an assist in his debut vs. Drexel. He made his first start against Stony Brook in place of an injured Ben Rubeor and finished with three goals and an assist. Billings erupted for a career-high five goals and two assists in the recent win over North Carolina.
The Canadian is fourth in the nation in total points (29) by a freshman and is the third-leading rookie goal scorer with 22.
Glading has scored twice in each of the last four games. An excellent feeder, his 12 assists are tied for third most by a freshman. Glading opened his career with a 2-goal, 2-assist performance against Drexel. He shared the team lead with two goals vs. Johns Hopkins.
They join a long line of freshmen who have made a mark on the Cavalier attack. Among the freshmen who have starred under head coach Dom Starsia include Christmas, Conor Gill, Doug Knight, Drew McKnight, Rubeor, Matt Ward, Michael Watson, Tim Whiteley and Joe Yevoli.