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No. 8 Virginia Plays Sunday at No. 2 Syracuse
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| No. 8 Virginia (2-0) at No. 2 Syracuse (1-1) |
Date and Time Sunday, Feb. 24, 2013, 1:00 p.m. Location Syracuse, N.Y. | Carrier Dome
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Feb. 22, 2013
CHARLOTTESVILLE – The No. 8 Virginia women’s lacrosse team (2-0) takes on its second top-10 ranked opponent, facing No. 2 Syracuse (1-1) on Sunday, Feb. 24 at 1 p.m. at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.
Virginia leads the all-time series, 11-3, and is 6-1 when playing at Syracuse. The Cavaliers have won the last eight meetings, including last season’s 9-7 victory in Charlottesville. Syracuse’s last win over UVa was a 14-13 victory in Virginia in 2004.
The Orange, who were ranked No. 2 in the IWLCA preseason coaches poll and No. 1 in the deBeer/Inside Lacrosse preseason media poll, dominated its season opener, winning 21-8 over Jacksonville, but were upset at home by No. 4 Maryland, 19-11.
Virginia began its season with a 10-9 upset victory over No. 6 Loyola in Maryland. The Cavaliers added another road win on Wednesday, defeating Richmond 13-7.
In both games, the Cavaliers trailed by a goal at the half. Against Loyola, Casey Bocklet (So., South Salem, N.Y.) scored two goals early in the second period, including one 36 seconds in, to put Virginia up. They never trailed again, though Loyola did tie up the game, 9-9, with 7:16 remaining. Dana Boyle (Jr., Londonderry, N.H.) scored the game winner on a feed from Bocklet with 5:29 remaining.
At Richmond, goals from Sally Jentis (So., Ridgewood, N.J.) and Caroline McTiernan (Garden City, N.Y.) gave the Cavaliers the lead within the first five minutes of the second period. The Cavaliers shut out the Spiders in the second half, outscoring the home team 6-0 after the break.
Goalkeeper Kim Kolarik (Sr., Riva, Md.) has had a pair of strong second-half performances. At Loyola, she had five saves in the second half to one in the first. At Richmond, she had six in the second period and three in the first.
Virginia has had a balanced attack in the first two games with eight different players scoring goals. Bocklet and Ashlee Warner (Jr., Corning, N.Y.) lead the squad with five goals apiece. Warner has four assists to pace UVa with nine points. Boyle leads the team with 12 shots.
The Cavalier attack will have a new look this season with the top-five goal scorers from 2012 absent from the 2013 roster. Sophomore Liza Blue (Butler, Md.), who scored 17 goals with two assists in her rookie season, is the top returner for the Cavalier attack, but she has yet to appear in a game this season. In addition to Bocklet and Jentis, who transferred into the program, the attack is also bolstered by the return of Boyle, who sat out the entire 2012 season with an injury, and Warner, who played one game last season before being hobbled by an injury. Boyle scored nine goals with three assists in 14 games during her 2011 freshman season.
Courtney Swan (So., Vero Beach, Fla.) leads the team with nine draw controls. Morgan Stephens (So., Olney, Md.) has five, nearly matching her 2012 season total of seven.
On Friday (Feb. 22), Kolarik and defender Megan Dunleavy (Sr., Faifax Station, Va.) were named to the 2013 Tewaaraton Award watch list. The Tewaaraton Award annually honors the top male and top female college lacrosse player in the United States. The selection committees are made up of top collegiate coaches and are appointed annually by The Tewaaraton Foundation. In April, the list will be narrowed down to 25 nominees in late April. In mid-May, five men’s and five women’s finalists will be announced. These finalists will be invited to Washington, D.C. for the 13th annual Tewaaraton Award Ceremony, May 30 at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian. Dunleavy, a co-captian for this year’s team, anchors a defense that ranked 25th among all NCAA Division I teams last season, allowing 10.0 goals per game. Kolarik played in 18 of Virginia’s 19 games last season, registering a .405 save percentage.
The Cavaliers’ first home game will be on Friday, March 1 when they host No. 4 Maryland at Klöckner Stadium. Virginia will follow that game by hosting No. 10 Penn State on Sunday, March 3 at 1 p.m. Single-game tickets are on sale now.