UVA Hosts No. 13 Loyola in Season Opener on Saturday

Feb. 8, 2018

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The Virginia men’s lacrosse team, ranked No. 15 in the preseason Inside Lacrosse/Maverik media poll and unranked in the USILA coaches poll, opens the 2018 campaign on Saturday against the Loyola Greyhounds. Loyola is ranked No. 10 in the media poll and No. 13 in the coaches poll. The game will be contested at Klöckner Stadium with faceoff slated for 1 p.m.

With the UVA men’s basketball game slated for a 6 p.m. start, lacrosse fans that park in the University Hall lot will need to vacate the lot by 4 p.m. There is also lacrosse parking available at the Emmet/Ivy Garage.

There is a new “Clear Bag” policy in place at Klöckner Stadium. Please click here to view Klöckner Stadium FAQs regarding bag and entry policies.

Fans that attend ESPN’s College GameDay at JPJ on Saturday can pick up a free ticket to Saturday’s lacrosse game upon leaving the event. The live show airs at 11 a.m.

Live stats of Saturday’s game will be available at VirginiaSports.com. The contest will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra, which can be viewed on the WatchESPN app, or by logging onto ESPN3.com. Luke Neer will bring the play-by-play and Doug Tarring will provide the analysis.

Saturday marks the 21st all-time meeting between the Cavaliers and the Greyhounds in a series that began in 1938. The series took a 23-year hiatus before being rekindled for the 2014 season. Saturday marks the third time in five seasons these teams have met at Scott Stadium. Virginia leads the all-time series with a 14-6 margin.

Loyola head coach Charley Toomey is in his 13th season at the helm of his alma mater and returns 34 letterwinners from last year’s 10-6 squad that fell in the NCAA first round to Ohio State.

UVA’s last contest with Loyola to open the 2017 season produced an exciting 16-15 victory, opening the Lars Tiffany era at Virginia. It was the coming out party for two talented newcomers to the UVA roster in 2017. Michael Kraus, the eventual ACC Freshman of the Year, scored five points with two goals and an assist. Dox Aitken earned ACC Player of the Week honors after scoring four goals in his collegiate debut.

The Cavaliers are 50-33-1 (.601) all-time in season openers, including a mark of 28-17 (.633) when opening up the season at home, including winning four of the last five. Saturday’s game will mark the seventh time in the last 12 seasons the Cavaliers have opened at home.

Virginia enters 2018 after finishing with an 8-7 record in 2017 and missing out on the NCAA Tournament for only the fourth time in 25 seasons. With 24 returning lettermen, including five starters.

Virginia returns to action on Feb. 17 when the Cavaliers travel to the “City of Brotherly Love” to face the Drexel Dragons. Faceoff is set for 1 p.m.

Tickets for Virginia home lacrosse games can be purchased online at VirginiaSports.com, by phone at (800) 542-8821 or in person at the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office in Bryant Hall at Scott Stadium Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Reserved seats for men’s home games are on sale for $10. Single-game general admission adult tickets for men’s home games are $8, while youth (18 and under), seniors (60 and over), and UVA faculty and staff tickets are $6 each. General admission tickets for groups of 20 or more are priced at $4.