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No. 8 UVa Hosts No. 12 Princeton in NCAA First Round on Sunday
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia Cavaliers (11-3) enter the 2012 NCAA Tournament as the No. 5 seed, the fifth time in program history they have had the fifth seed. UVa is ranked this week No. 8 in the USILA coaches poll and No. 6 in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll following a bye week for final exams. UVa hosts its eighth-straight NCAA first round game on Sunday when the unseeded Princeton Tigers (11-4) invade Klöckner Stadium. Princeton, the regular season Ivy League champions, is ranked No. 12 in both the coaches and media polls. The game is set to face off at 1 p.m. Live stats will be available at VirginiaSports.com.
There will be a live radio broadcast in the Charlottesville area on WINA 1070 AM, which will be simulcast as an audio webcast on VirginiaSports.com through Virginia Sports Online Radio. John Freeman will bring the play-by-play, Doug Tarring will provide the analysis and Jack Bird will roam the sidelines.
The game will be televised on ESPN in HD. Eamon McAnaney will provide the play-by-play, while Paul Carcaterra will add analysis. The ESPN broadcast will be also be streamed live on ESPN3.
This is Virginia’s 35th tournament appearance overall, second all-time behind Johns Hopkins (41). Virginia won the national championship last season and has received a bid in 19 of the last 20 seasons. UVa has made it to the semifinal round in each of the past four seasons.
Sunday marks the 24th all-time meeting between the Cavaliers and Tigers, and the first since 2008. UVa leads the all-time series 13-10, but is 0-3 when meeting Princeton in the NCAA Tournament. The losses in the 1994 and 1996 NCAA Tournaments came in the title game, while the 2000 setback was in the semifinal round. Sunday is the first NCAA Tournament meeting between UVa and Princeton played at a home site.
ACC Offensive Player of the Year and recently named Tewaaraton Trophy finalist Steele Stanwick leads UVa with 71 points and 45 assists, while scoring 26 goals. Stanwick leads the nation in assists and his 5.07 points per game ranks No. 2 nationally. Chris Bocklet leads the team with 32 goals, while Rob Emery has 22 tallies. All-ACC pick Colin Briggs has 18 goals and 14 assists, while All-ACC honoree Chris LaPierre leads UVa with 55 ground balls. Rob Fortunato is saving 57.6 percent of shots against him and registering an 8.34 goals against average this season between the pipes.
Princeton head coach Chris Bates is in his third season with the Tigers after a stellar career at Drexel. Bates led Princeton to the regular-season Ivy League title this season and is making his second NCAA appearance since taking over the program. Tom Schreiver leads Princeton with 30 goals and 26 assists for 56 points. Jeff Froccaro and Alex Capretta have scored 25 and 23 goals, respectively. John Cunningham leads the Tigers with 50 ground balls, while Tyler Fiorito is saving 58.9 percent of shots in cage, while posting a 7.15 goals against average.
Fans may purchase tickets in person at the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office in Bryant Hall or by calling (800) 542-8821. Tickets can also be purchased online at VirginiaSports.com General admission tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for youth (18-and-under) and students of participating schools with a valid student ID.
A limited number of Reserved Seats are available at $10.
A $5 cash charge will be in effect for the U-Hall, JPJA and McCue parking lots on Sunday because UVa is hosting a first-round game of the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championships at Klöckner Stadium. This charge applies to baseball and men’s lacrosse fans. Free parking will be available in the Emmet/Ivy Garage on Sunday.
With large crowds expected for the baseball and men’s lacrosse games, fans are encouraged to arrive early. Gates open for both baseball and men’s lacrosse at 11 a.m.