No. 6 UVA Falls in Season Opener at No. 4 Loyola
BALTIMORE – The No. 6 Virginia Cavaliers (0-1) fell in the season opener against the No. 4 Loyola Greyhounds (1-0), 17-9, on Saturday at the Ridley Athletic Complex.
The Greyhounds’ goalie Jacob Stover was hot between the pipes, saving 18 shots by the Cavaliers. UVA opened the game with an extra-man goal by junior Dox Aitken 48 seconds into the game on a Michael Kraus helper. Loyola outscored UVA 8-3 the rest of the first half to take a four-point lead into the intermission, 8-4.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UVA was leading 1-0 when a 3-0 Loyola run gave the Greyhounds the lead for good, 3-1. Two goals by Loyola’s Pat Spencer sparked a five-goal first quarter for LU.
After being outshot in the first quarter, 15-6, the Cavaliers managed 13 shots in the second quarter but only managed one goal as Stover made six saves in the second quarter.
Stover made seven saves in the third quarter as the Greyhounds started to pull away from UVA. Loyola picked up 11 ground balls in the fourth quarter and outscored UVA 5-2 in the final frame to solidify the win. Spencer and Kevin Lindley each scored five goals in the winning effort for Loyola, while Spencer also added two assists.
DOX AITKEN … on a Kraus helper – scores as time expires in the first quarter. After one quarter, Loyola leads UVA, 5-3. pic.twitter.com/6zPTFQqCEY
— Virginia Men’s Lacrosse (@UVAMensLax) February 9, 2019
UVA STAT LEADERS
• A Matt Moore
3 goals, 2 assists
• A Michael Kraus
1 goal, 3 assists
• M Dox Aitken
3 goals
• D Logan Greco
3 GBs, 2 CTs
NOTES
• With three goals, M Dox Aitken has scored 11 career goals at Loyola’s Ridley Athletic Complex
• Aitken now has 71 career goals, which places him No. 12 all-time at UVA in career goals among midfielders.
• A Matt Moore tied a career-high three goals and five points.
• A Michael Kraus extends his active game streak with a point to 34 games, which is the fourth-longest active streak in the nation.
• UVA lost a season-opening game for only the second time in 12 seasons and for the first time since 2016 (vs. Loyola).
FROM THE LOCKER ROOM
“Fantastic overall effort from the entire Loyola team. It would be easy to focus on a Herculean effort by their goalie, Jacob Stover, and certainly look at potentially the nation’s best player in Pat Spencer and what those two did, but that would take away from the entire team effort that we encountered. It was a heck of a team effort by Loyola on both sides of the field. We tried to hold our slides on defense and they made us pay for that. When we did slide and double the ball, they seemed to find openings. It was one of those frustrating days as defensive coordinator trying to figure out the magic formula and there wasn’t one. It is easier to learn from the sting of a loss and we have the opportunity to learn from this loss. I love this team.” – Lars Tiffany.
UP NEXT
Virginia returns home on Feb. 16 when No. 13 Lehigh comes to Klöckner Stadium for the 2019 home opener. Faceoff is set for noon and the game will be broadcast live on ACC Network Extra.