No. 4 Seed Virginia Challenges Top-Seeded Notre Dame in ACC Semifinals

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – In a rematch of last week’s regular-season finale, No. 4 seed Virginia (10-4) takes on No. 1 seed Notre Dame (10-1) in the ACC Tournament semifinals on Friday (May 3). Opening faceoff from American Legion Memorial Stadium is set for 5 p.m. as Anish Shroff (play-by-play), Matt Ward (analyst) and Marilyn Payne (reporter) will have the call on ACC Network.

NUMBERS TO KNOW

1 – Connor Shellenberger (183a) only needs one assist to shatter Matt Danowski’s  ACC career assists record.

2 – Payton Cormier (211g) needs two goals to break Justin Guterding’s ACC career goals record.

20 – The reigning ACC Tournament champion Virginia Cavaliers are in search of the program’s 20th overall ACC championship and eighth ACC tournament title (97, 99, 00, 03, 06, 10, 19).

VIRGINIA IN THE ACC TOURNAMENT

• The ACC Tournament resumes for the first time since 2019, when then-No. 1 seed Virginia defeated the Fighting Irish, 10-4, in the championship game at Klöckner Stadium.
• Of UVA’s 19 total ACC championships, seven of them have come from winning the conference tournament (’97, ’99, ’00, ’03, ’06, ’10, ’19).
• The Hoos have won the ACC Tournament five times as the No. 1 seed and twice as the No. 2
• In 1999, 2003, 2006 and 2019, the Cavaliers captured both ACC and NCAA Tournament titles.
• As the No. 4 seed, Virginia is 2-5 all-time in the ACC Tournament, but has won its previous two semifinals contests as the fourth seed (2013 & 2018) before falling in the title game both years.
• Lars Tiffany, who was hired as UVA head coach in 2017, is 3-1 all-time in ACC Tournament contests.
• The 2020 tournament was canceled due to COVID-19 and from 2021-23, the ACC did not host a tournament, instead the league played a six-game conference schedule.

A WIN FOR THE CAVALIERS WOULD…

• Snap a three-game UVA losing skid, its first since 2014.
• Extend the Cavaliers’ active win streak in the ACC Tournament to three consecutive games.
• Mark the program’s fourth consecutive victory in the ACC semifinals.
• Snap the Fighting Irish’s eight-game win streak, which is tied for the third longest among all Division I teams as of May 1.

SERIES HISTORY

• Virginia leads the all-time series over Notre Dame, which began in 1993, 11-10.
• Notre Dame, which currently owns a two-game win streak in the series, is 2-0 all-time against the Cavaliers at neutral sites.
• UVA is 1-1 against the Fighting Irish in the ACC Tournament having lost in the ACC championship game in 2018, but was victorious the following year at Klöckner Stadium.
• In the 2019 ACC Tournament championship game, Virginia knocked off the Fighting Irish, 10-4, after holding UND scoreless for 42:12 of game time.
• The first-ever meeting on May 15, 1993, was an NCAA Tournament game that UVA won 19-9 at Klöckner Stadium in the facility’s inaugural season.
• Last year, UVA won both regular-season meetings before falling 13-12 in overtime in the NCAA semifinals at Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, Pa.). Prior to their postseason loss, the Cavaliers had won the previous six meetings with Notre Dame.
• In the last 784 days dating back to March 13, 2022, Notre Dame has only lost to two different teams, Virginia (three times) and Georgetown in overtime earlier this season (Feb. 25).
• The two teams have squared off in the NCAA Tournament five times (’93, ’94, ’06, ’12, ’23) with the Cavaliers leading 3-2 in such contests.
• In 2006, Virginia defeated the Irish 20-8 in the quarterfinals before capturing the program’s fourth NCAA title, in a 15-7 decision over UMass at Lincoln Financial Field.
• In the 2012 NCAA Tournament quarterfinals at PPL Park (Chester, Pa.), both teams were tied 6-6 heading into the fourth quarter before the Irish outscored UVA 6-4 in the final period.
• Notre Dame attackman and Charlottesville native Max Pfeifer (Western Albemarle HS) recorded his first hat trick of the 2012 season. The Irish were eliminated by eventual-champion Loyola in the semifinals.
• The 2012 loss marked the final career game for UVA All-Americans Steele Stanwick, Colin Briggs, Chris Bocklet, Matt Lovejoy and Rob Fortunato.

LAST TIME OUT

• Virginia suffered its third consecutive loss – a first since 2014 – after falling 11-9 to No. 1 Notre Dame at Klöckner Stadium on Senior Day last Saturday (April 27).
• The Cavaliers let a three-goal lead slip away and the Fighting Irish scored the final three goals to successfully mount a comeback.
• Despite leading the nation in ground balls, UVA was outmaneuvered on the ground by the Irish, 51-26.
• The Cavaliers had 27 turnovers, including eight failed clears. UVA’s 27 turnovers are its most in a single game since the 2021 regular season.
• Payton Cormier (4g) led the way for the Hoos on offense.
• Defensively, Virginia was anchored Cole Kastner (4ct, 1gb), who held ACC Offensive Player of the Year Pat Kavanagh to two goals and two assists along with five turnovers. John Schroter (4ct, 2gb) and Chase Yager (2ct, 2gb) also contributed solid outings.
• Anthony Ghobriel (10-17 FO) and Thomas Colucci (3-6 FO) combined to finished above 50 percent at the faceoff X.

CAVALIERS AMONG THE NATION’S STATISTICAL LEADERS

• For games played through April 30, Virginia leads the nation in caused turnovers (11.64) and ground balls (39.00).
• The Cavaliers are third nationally in clearing (.913), fourth in assists (9.43), fifth in man-up offense (.520) and points (24.07), and seventh in scoring offense (14.64).
• In addition to caused turnovers and ground balls, UVA leads the ACC in clearing and saves.
• Among all Division I players this season, Payton Cormier currently leads the nation in goals (3.71) and is 18th in points (4.50). Connor Shellenberger is sixth in assists (3.07) and ninth in points (4.93). Cole Kastner is 10th in caused turnovers (1.93) and Matthew Nunes is 16th in save percentage (.549).

ON THE HORIZON

• The winner of Virginia-Notre Dame takes on the winner of No. 2 seed Syracuse (11-4) and No. 3 seed Duke (11-4) in the championship game on Sunday (May 5) at noon on ACC Network.
• The Division I men’s lacrosse selection show is slated for Sunday at 9:30 p.m. on ESPNU.