Men’s Lacrosse Receives Two Seven-Figure Commitments Establishing New Scholarship Endowments
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia Athletics and the Virginia Athletics Foundation (VAF) announced today (Sept. 18) two anonymous seven-figure commitments that have established endowed scholarships in support of the Virginia men’s lacrosse program.
Both commitments are unprecedented – first marked the men’s lacrosse program’s inaugural seven-figure gift, and the second became the single largest commitment in program history.
Virginia Men’s Lacrosse Alumni Bicentennial Scholarship Fund
The first of these gifts made by a program alumnus established the Virginia Men’s Lacrosse Alumni Bicentennial Scholarship Fund. This $1 million commitment, when coupled with the University’s Bicentennial Scholarship Fund 50 percent match, was made to fully endow an out-of-state scholarship. Since the establishment of this fund earlier this year, seven other men’s lacrosse alumni have made multi-year commitments to grow this endowment.
“This is about the power of the group, everybody’s got a part in this,” the anonymous donor said. “We are thankful and proud to be a part of this UVA lacrosse tradition, but also focused on making sure UVA can continue to compete at the elite level. Alongside the institutional support that is absolutely necessary to compete with other elite universities, we need to make sure we get the lacrosse program capitalized at a level on par with every peer institution.”
Men’s Lacrosse Family Legacy Scholarship Fund
Inspired by the establishment of the first scholarship, another anonymous donor made the largest commitment in the history of the program with the creation of the Men’s Lacrosse Family Legacy Scholarship Fund. The fund was designed to preserve the program’s legacy and secure its future, and six additional families have already made multi-year commitments in support.
The Men’s Lacrosse Family Legacy Scholarship Fund was established with a $1.6 million commitment, which will be matched to bring the total impact of the gift to $2.4 million. The donor’s contribution fully funds one scholarship, with the goal that the matching funds and continued support from other families and friends, will allow the fund to endow a second scholarship.
“In starting the Men’s Lacrosse Family Legacy Scholarship, we wanted to create a platform to honor the collective men’s lacrosse family – past and present – and continue to build on the program for years to come,” said the anonymous donor. “In today’s changing landscape of college sports, we feel it is important to help sustain UVA’s rich legacy of men’s lacrosse success. Other families have already contributed to this effort, and we hope many more will join in the future.”
Men’s Lacrosse Fundraising Momentum
These two record-breaking and generous commitments are part of the larger momentum around fundraising support for men’s lacrosse in the last year. Through 2024, Virginia men’s lacrosse received $5.1 million towards their scholarship endowments. Since the start of 2025, more than $6.5 million has been committed to men’s lacrosse scholarship endowments – surpassing the total raised over the previous 76 years combined.
“We have always known how much our alumni, fans, and families care about our success: this is the most recent proof of such,” head coach Lars Tiffany said. “Thank you to all who have already been so generous, and to those who are considering contributing to endowing our scholarships to secure our future.”
Endowing men’s Olympic sports remains a priority for Virginia Athletics, and these gifts signify the path forward for all of Virginia’s Olympic programs. Under the post-House Settlement model, in which scholarship limits have been replaced by roster caps, endowing a sport’s current scholarship offering allows for the potential addition of future scholarships.
“I am filled with immense gratitude for the leadership and commitment of these donors,” said Director of Athletics Carla Williams. “Men’s lacrosse has a rich history at UVA, one that is built on the support of generations of Cavaliers. We are incredibly fortunate to have a passionate base that cares deeply about the future success of our men’s lacrosse program and is working hard to secure it.”
About Virginia Athletics Foundation
The Virginia Athletics Foundation (VAF) proudly supports the University of Virginia’s 27 men’s and women’s Division I programs. Cavalier Olympic sport programs rank among the nation’s best, but their continued success depends on strong philanthropic investment. The leadership and generosity reflected in these commitments represent an important step toward UVA’s goal of fully endowing all Olympic sport scholarships and programs.
Every gift makes a difference. To learn how you can join these generous donors in supporting Virginia men’s lacrosse scholarships, please email Brendan Taffe, Associate Director of Major Gifts, at btaffe@virginia.edu.
For more information about supporting UVA student-athletes through scholarship endowments, visit VirginiaAthleticsFoundation.com.