UVA Lacrosse Preview

This guest piece is brought to you by Paul Gilbert, my dear friend and fellow Wahoo... and as you can tell, a huge Virginia LAX fan. Thanks for contributing to Wahooze, Paulie!

Everyone -- ENJOY!




As Kendall is busy covering basketball, football (a year 'round endeavor), and baseball, I will contribute some brief lacrosse analysis for the 2010 season. Currently ranked #2 in the Baltimore Sun poll, the Hoos are out for blood after an ugly loss to Cornell in the NCAA semis last spring. Virginia beat Stony Brook 13-8 on Saturday, bringing their record to 3-0, after victories over 'schedule-to-win' opponents Drexel and Mount St. Mary's.


The Cavaliers lost seniors Danny Glading (attack), Garrett Billings (attack), Gavin Gill (attack), Mike Timms, (long stick middie), and Matt Kelly (defense), among others, to graduation after last season. Midfield is going to be the strength of this team, while the attack is young and unproven, with lots of upside. Expect teams to jam our middies and put the pressure on the inexperienced attack. Sophomore attackmen Steele Stanwick and Chris Broklet, as well as incoming freshmen Connor English (attack), Matt White (attack),and Chris LaPierre (midfield) will have to step up in order for us to put points on the board, while highly rated recruit Harry Prevas (D) will be needed on the defensive side of the field. Freshman Howie Long, Jr. is viewed as a project on D, with potential to become a solid starter later in his career.



UVA Lax Position by Position


Attack

As I mentioned above, this group is very young, but extremely talented. So far, they are working together very well, and it is going to be exciting to watch them grow together. If there is any position in lacrosse where talent can triumph experience, it's on attack, where freshman Connor English, a lefty, has been lighting it up on the left side against mediocre defenses so far this season. Sophomores Steele Stanwick and Chris Bocklet have also been very productive, and I'm feeling pretty good about our attack so far.


Midfield


By far our deepest position, the midfield is anchored by first line starters Shamel and Rhamel Bratton, both juniors, and senior Brian Carroll. These guys will demand a lot of attention from opposing defenders, and will be relied upon to create plays for our young attackmen.


Freshman Chris LaPierre (nicknamed "Shocker"), a talented athlete who got serious looks from D1 football programs at safety and running back, is really impressing so far. Big, fast, and tough, so far he has been great in clears and fast breaks, and should be a star for us for a long time.


Defense


I have a feeling that our success is really going to rest on the quality of our defensive play this year. Anchored by two seniors, Ken Clausen and Ryan Nizolek, if the defense can keep us in games and give goalie Adam Ghitelman a chance, then we will go deep in the playoffs. Freshman Harry Prevas has been impressive and getting a decent amount of playing time so far, which is encouraging, but I'm worried this group lacks the big, physical, "enforcer" needed to keep the talented attacks we will face this year in check.



Goalie


Junior starter Adam Ghitelman is pretty solid. Good in clears and moving outside the net, so-so at stopping shots. We'll see.



(Very) Quick Game Recaps


UVA 11, Drexel 8
Drexel actually jumped out to a 4-1 lead after dominating us on face-offs (a definite concern going into this season) in the first quarter, but UVA was too much in the 4th, and won 11-8.


UVA 15, Mount St. Mary's 7
Hoos go up 5-1 in the first and never look back. At one point, Bocklet scored 4 of 5 UVA goals. English had 3, and the Hoos rolled.


UVA 13, Stony Brook 8
Bocklet and Stanwick each go for 3, Ghitelman has his best game of the season, Hoos are 3-0.



Up next is two-time defending champ, and #1-ranked Syracuse. This game will be in Charlottesville on Saturday, March 7th, and our first true test of the season. The Hoos have won 5 straight regular season games against Syracuse (including a 14-13 overtime thriller that I witnessed at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore back in '08), but they lost their most recent playoff matchup against the Orange (later in 2008, in double OT). All of you who are local to the 'Ville should turn out to support the team. This is an intense rivalry, #1 vs. #2 (assuming 'Cuse takes care of business against Army on Sunday), and will no doubt be an exciting two hours.


I will be giving periodic updates as the season progresses, especially after games I am able to attend (@Towson and @MD, and hopefully the ACC tourney games in College Park and the NCAA semis and finals in Baltimore).


Go Hoos!