Rally Time! 10-0 Run Moves UVa into NCAA Finals with 14-13 Comeback Win vs. Duke

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May 26, 2007

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With the Virginia women’s lacrosse team facing a 13-4 deficit with 20 minutes to play, the Cavaliers called timeout–and proceeded to set an NCAA record for the largest comeback in NCAA Championships history, scoring the final 10 goals of the game to defeat Duke 14-13. Jess Wasilewski, a Philadelphia native, scored her third goal of the game with nine seconds to play to cap the 10-0 run and send the No. 3 Cavaliers (19-3) to the finals, where they will face two-time reigning champion Northwestern. The Championship game will start at 7 p.m. and be televised by CSTV.

In the 10-0 run, Philadelphia native Megan Havrilla had three goals and 2006 National Rookie of the Year Blair Weymouth added a hat trick; Ashley McCulloch had one goal and three assists.

Duke scored 25 seconds into the game as Kristen Waagbo scored on a hidden-ball trick, putting the Blue Devils up 1-0. Kaitlin Duff caused a turnover on the sidelines and after three saves by Kim Imbesi, Virginia got on the board as Wasilewski scored a quick stick from Kate Breslin to tie the game. Duke won the draw and scored 28 seconds later to retake the lead. A Michelle Menser goal four minutes later gave Duke a 3-1 lead.

Brittany Kalkstein won the draw and Virginia settled the ball and got off a shot that was saved, but Kalkstein was there to corral the loose ball and worked the ball over to Megan O’Malley, who drove in from the top and scored at 19:12. The Blue Devils then scored the next five goals, including two from Caroline Cryer and two from Waagbo, to open up an 8-2 lead. Weymouth won the ensuing draw and the Hoos worked the ball behind to McCulloch, who notched the first of her four assists as Breslin quicksticked the ball into the net 24 seconds after Cryer’s goal to pull UVa to within five at 8-3. The teams took that score into the break.

Claire Bordley started it off for the Cavaliers in the second half as she intercepted a pass at the restraining line and started a clear that saw Weymouth take from the top to pull UVa within four.

Duke then scored the next five goals, starting with a pair from Rachel Sanford, to open up a 13-4 lead with 20:46 to play. The Cavaliers called a timeout.

The Blue Devils won the draw, but an overthrow was controlled by the Cavaliers on the boundary ball. Virginia settled the ball and drew a 3-seconds call. Weymouth converted the shot for a 13-5 score.

McCulloch won the draw and the Cavaliers set up their offense that was disrupted with a dropped ball in the arc; Duke in turn dropped the ball and McCulloch pounced on it, sticking it in the cage for Virginia’s second goal in under a minute. She won the next draw as well and led Havrilla with a pass, who was all alone at the top of the critical scoring area. Havrilla raced in uncontested and scored eight seconds after McCulloch for a 13-7 score. Duke won the draw but on an attempt to settle their offense, McCulloch stepped in front of a pass and intercepted the ball on the run, taking it all the way to the cage before dishing it to Breslin, who faked out the goalie twice and scored for a fourth consecutive goal–all in the span of two minutes. Duke took a timeout.

The Blue Devils won the draw, but another Duke missed catch led to a ground ball by Bordley, who fed the ball up to Weymouth at the midfield stripe. Weymouth raced in the 50 yards and scoring one minute after Breslin at 14:12 for a 13-9 score. Wasilewski picked up an overthrow at the restraining line and again it was Weymouth driving in unassisted for a goal at 10:33, the Cavaliers’ sixth consecutive goal.

Weymouth won the draw and the Hoos quickly brought the ball behind where she dumped the ball to Wasilewski, who scored on a quickstick less than a minute after Weymouth to move UVa into double digits at 13-10. Kalkstein won the draw, her fourth of the game, and Havrilla took from the top, scoring 39 seconds after Wasilewski for a 13-11 score. A save by McBrearty was collected by Bordley, and the Cavaliers cleared the ball where Havrilla again took from the top, scoring at 4:48 to tie the game, Virginia’s ninth consecutive goal. Duke called their final timeout.

Duke won the draw and set up their offense, but Duff caused a turnover on the sidelines and Virginia set up their offense for the final shot. With 30 seconds to go, Weymouth drove but pulled out, and the Cavaliers worked the ball over to Wasilewski, who drove down the left of the arc and stuck a shot in the cage with nine seconds to play. It was the first lead of the night for the Cavaliers.

Cryer won the draw, but the Virginia defense denied her an opportunity to shoot, and Virginia defeated Duke 14-13. It was the largest deficit ever overcome in an NCAA Championships game, besting the five-goal deficit recorded by Dartmouth in the 1998 quarterfinals.

McCulloch’s four assists ties the second-highest number of assists in an NCAA semifinal game and gives her seven in the tournament, the seventh-highest total in championships history.

Breslin had two goals and an assist, she now has scored 13 goals and has 18 points in the tournament. Thirteen goals is the fifth-highest total in a tournament, and 18 points ranks eighth all-time in championships history. She also now has 182 points, passing All-American Anna Yates for ninth all-time in school history.

The Class of 2007 is playing in their third NCAA final, and this marks the fourth final in the last five years for Virginia. The Cavaliers lost to Northwestern in the 2005 final 13-10 at the US Naval Academy, but the Hoos were the last team to defeat the `Cats in NCAA play with a 15-11 victory in the NCAA quarterfinals in 2004.

Linescore	1	2	Final	(records)Virginia	3	11	14	(19-3)Duke		8	5	13	(16-4)

29:35 D Waagbo (—) 0-124:34 V Wasilewski (Breslin) 1-124:06 D Cryer (Jester) 1-220:59 D Menser (Waagbo) 1-319:12 V O’Malley (Weymouth) 2-314:58 D Cryer (—) 2-414:01 D Waagbo (Cryer) 2-510:29 D Waagbo (—) 2-610:15 D Sanford (—) 2-77:54 D Cryer (Waagbo) 2-87:30 V Breslin (McCulloch) 3-828:21 V Weymouth (—) 4-827:03 D Sanford (—) 4-926:18 D Sanford (8m) 4-1026:08 D Menser (Jester) 4-1123:53 D Cryer (Jester) 4-1220:46 D Kachulis (Del Monte) 4-1317:09 V Weymouth (8m) 5-1316:15 V McCulloch (—) 6-1316:07 V Havrilla (McCulloch) 7-1315:07 V Breslin (McCulloch) 8-1314:12 V Weymouth (—) 9-1310:33 V Weymouth (—) 10-139:37 V Wasilewski (McCulloch) 11-138:58 V Havrilla (—) 12-134:47 V Havrilla (—) 13-130:09 V Wasilewski (—) 14-13

Scoring: VA: McCulloch 1-4=5; Weymouth 4-1=5; Havrilla 3-0=3; Wasilewski 3-0=3; Breslin 2-1=3; O’Malley 1-0=1
DU: Cryer 4-1=5; Waagbo 3-2=5; Jester 0-3=3; Sanford 3-0=3; Menser 2-0=2; Kachulis 1-0=1, Del Monte 0-1=1

Keepers: VA: McBrearty: (59:50 minutes, 4 saves, 12 GA); Lauren Benner (0:10 minutes, 0 saves, 1 GA)
DU: Kim Imbesi (60 minutes, 16 saves, 13 GA)

Draws: VA 14, Duke 15
Total shots: VA 44, Duke 23
Field shots: VA 41, Duke 22
Ground balls: VA 16, Duke 10
Turnovers: VA 10, Duke 19
Caused turnovers: VA 11, Duke 6
Fouls: VA 13, Duke 19
8-meter attempts: VA 3, Duke 1
8-meter shots: VA 3, Duke 1
Clearing: VA 8-11, Duke 9-14
Cards: Duke: Davis, YC, 19:06 (1st); Sanford, YC, 2:59 (2nd)