Carnevale Leads Virginia to 19-10 Win over Pitt

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Behind a performance of the season from Katia Carnevale on the offensive end, the Virginia women’s lacrosse team (8-1, 3-1 ACC) rolled to a 19-10 victory over Pitt (2-7, 0-4 ACC) on Saturday afternoon at Klöckner Stadium.

Carnevale (6g, 1a) led the Cavaliers in scoring with seven total points. Morgan Schwab (3g, 3a) and Jenna Dinardo (3g) each recorded hat tricks while Madison Alaimo (1g, 3a) tied career highs in points and assists. Kiki Shaw (2g, 1a), Mackenzie Hoeg (1g, 2a), Kate Miller (1g, 2a), Kate Galica (1g) and Abby Manalang (1g) rounded out a total of nine Cavaliers who found the back of the net on the day.

Kate Demark was a standout performer for the Cavaliers scooping up three ground balls while causing a turnover in the ride game for Virginia. Kiki Shaw caused a pair of turnovers while adding in three ground balls of her own. In cage, Mel Josephson made five saves on the day.

How it Happened
Virginia jumped out to a quick start scoring the game’s first three goals as Schwab assisted two of the three. After Pitt made the score 4-2 with 7:15 to play in the first quarter, Virginia bookended the opening frame with its second three-goal scoring run to go into the second period with a 7-3 lead.

Pitt stopped the Cavalier run with the opening goal of the second period, but Virginia ripped off three more goals in succession to increase the lead to six. After Pitt capitalized on an extra-player opportunity with just over three to play in the opening half, Kate Miller found Katia Carnevale with a clever cross-field pass as Carnevale buried it top-shelf to give UVA a, 11-4 advantage going into the break.

Once again, the Cavaliers blitzed their opponents from the opening whistle of the second half. Virginia outscored their opponents by a margin of 7-2 in the third period as Morgan Schwab finished off an assist from Kiki Shaw with just 21 seconds remaining in the quarter. The goal increased Virginia’s lead to 11, its largest of the day. The Cavaliers would see out the victory in the fourth, cruising to a 19-10 win. 

From Head Coach Sonia LaMonica:
“We showed a lot of great effort. I did think there was a period where we came out of the gates really strong, and we found some early goals. Then, I thought we did get a little casual and a little undisciplined. What I love is how we responded. The team stepped up and they locked it back in. And that was awesome and beautiful to see. We had some amazing performances: Katia with six and one, Morgan continued with her strong play, and our defensive effort was solid. Overall, another great day to be a Hoo.”

With the Win:

• Virginia improves to 8-1 on the season and a 4-1 record at Klöckner Stadium
• The Cavaliers are enjoying their best start to a season since the 2007 team went 10-1 through the first 11 games of the season in route to an appearance in the NCAA title game
• UVA moves to 3-1 in ACC play this season, the second-best record in the league
• The Cavaliers improve to 3-0 all time against Pitt

Additional Notes

• Katia Carnevale recorded a season-high of six goals
• Morgan Schwab has recorded three or more assists in five consecutive
• Schwab’s season assist tally improves to 37 to lead NCAA Division I
• Jenna Dinardo recorded her third-consecutive hat trick with three goals against Pitt
• Madison Alaimo tied career-highs in points (4) and assists (3)
• Kate Galica led the team pulling down eight draw controls on the day.
• The Cavalier ride was relentless forcing Pitt into six failed clears on the day
• Virginia cleared the ball well converting on 23 of 24 attempts
• As a team, the Cavaliers won the battle in the circle with 17 draw controls compared to Pitt’s 15
• Virginia won the ground ball battle picking up 24 to Pitt’s 21
• Virginia scored seven goals in both the first and third quarters, matching the second highest goal total in a single quarter this season
• Mel Josephson took the win for Virginia moving to 8-1 on the season while making five saves
• Abby Jansen made two saves while Ashley Vernon made one stop
• Abby Manalang scored her first goal of the season and the sixth of her career
• Devon Gogerty notched the first assist of her career

Up Next:
The Cavaliers will be back at Klöckner Stadium for a mid-week clash with No. 4 James Madison on Wednesday (March 20). First draw is set for 5 p.m.