No. 6 UVA Heads to High Point for a Tuesday-Night Clash

Feb. 19, 2018

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia men’s lacrosse team returns to action on Tuesday night as the Cavaliers (2-0) travel to High Point, N.C., to play the High Point Panthers (0-3). Faceoff at Vert Lacrosse Stadium is set for 7 p.m. UVA is ranked No. 6 this week in both the USILA coaches and Inside Lacrosse/Maverick media polls.

Live stats will be available at VirginiaSports.com. There will be a web video stream of the game courtesy of the Big South Network, which can also be accessed at VirginiaSports.com. Craig Blum will call the play-by-play, while Kevin McMahon will provide analysis.

Virginia and High Point are meeting for the third time in men’s lacrosse and for the first time at HPU. After UVA’s 18-12 win over the Panthers in 2017, the series is now tied at 1-1. HPU escaped from Klöckner Stadium in 2016 with a 12-11 overtime win. UVA holds a 31-2 all-time advantage over current teams from the Southern Conference, including a 23-0 all-time record against in-state foe VMI. The Southern Conference is in its fourth season as a men’s lacrosse league and besides Air Force (1967), Bellarmine (2005) and VMI (1983), the remaining five members started their lacrosse programs in the last eight years. Also, part of the SoCon are Jacksonville (2010), Mercer (2011), High Point (2012), Furman (2014) and Richmond (2014).

Dox Aitken and Ian Laviano share the team lead with five goals each, while Aitken’s seven points are the most among all Cavaliers. Laviano is second on the team with six points, while Matt Moore rounds out the top scorers with three goals and five points. So far, 13 different Cavaliers have scored a point this season. Justin Schwenk is winning 63.6 percent (28-of-44) of his faceoffs and has a team-best 12 ground balls. Goalie Griffin Thompson has started both games between the pipes, saving 54.5 percent of shots, while posting a 9.66 goals against average.

Jon Torpey is in his sixth season as the Panthers’ head coach, their only one in program history. The Panthers’ first season of playing lacrosse was the 2013 season. Torpey welcomes back 25 letterwinners from last year’s 4-10 team. High Point won the SoCon in 2015 and made its first NCAA Tournament appearance that season. High Point has started out 0-3 in 2018, but are coming off a two-goal home loss to then-No. 2 Maryland last Saturday, 16-14. Asher Nolting leads High Point with five assists and 10 points. Conner Robinson has a team-high seven goals, while Chris Young rounds out the top scorers with four goals. Goalie Tim Troutner has seen the majority of time between the pipes and he is saving 38.6 percent of shots, while posting a 15.88 goals against average.

Virginia returns to action on Saturday when the Princeton Tigers come to town. Princeton is making its first trip to Klöckner Stadium since the 2012 NCAA Tournament. Faceoff is set for 1 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra, which can be viewed on the WatchESPN app, or by logging onto ESPN3.com.

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.