The UVA men’s lacrosse team begins its NCAA Tournament quest on Sunday when the No. 7 seed Cavaliers host the Big Ten champion Johns Hopkins Blue Jays in the first round. Faceoff is set for 1 p.m. UVa (10-4) is ranked No. 9 in the final regular season USILA coaches poll and No. 7 in the final regular season Cascade/Maverik media poll. Johns Hopkins (9-6) is ranked No. 10 in the coaches poll and No. 13 in the media poll.
There will be a live radio broadcast in the Charlottesville area on WINA 1070 AM. John Freeman will bring the play-by-play, Doug Tarring will provide the game analysis and Jack Bird will be on the sideline. ESPNU will televise the game live in HD with Mike Corey providing the play-by-play and former UVa All-American Matt Ward providing color analysis.
Parking for Sunday’s game is $5 in the University Hall, John Paul Jones Arena and McCue Center lots. This charge applies to fans attending Sunday’s baseball, men’s lacrosse, and women’s lacrosse games. Free parking will be available in the Emmet/Ivy Garage.
Fans may purchase tickets online at VirginiaSports.com, by calling (800) 542-8821, or in person at the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office in Bryant Hall at Scott Stadium Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.. General admission tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for youth 18-and-under and students of the participating schools with a valid student ID.
This is Virginia’s 37th tournament appearance overall, third behind Johns Hopkins (43) and Maryland (38). Virginia has won five NCAA titles and has received a bid in 21 of head coach Dom Starsia’s 23 seasons on Grounds.
Sunday’s game will be the 16th time in NCAA Tournament history UVa and Johns Hopkins have met. No two teams have faced each other more in the tournament than the Cavaliers and Blue Jays. Johns Hopkins holds a 9-6 advantage over UVa in NCAA Tournament action, but the Cavaliers have won four of the last six meetings in the tournament.
The 2015 season marks the 69th straight season the Cavaliers and the Blue Jays have clashed in an all-time series that began in 1904. Johns Hopkins holds the all-time advantage with a 58-30-1 mark, however Virginia has won eight of the last 12 meetings, including a streak of six in a row before dropping three of the last five matchups. Virginia’s 89 all-time games against the Blue Jays is the most games the Cavaliers have played against any opponent in their history. Earlier this season UVa scored two goals in the game’s final 1:34 to force overtime. Greg Coholan scored the overtime winner to lift UVa over the Blue Jays. 16-15.
Coholan leads UVa with 37 goals and 50 points. Owen Van Arsdale and Ryan Tucker are No. 2 on the team with 24 goals. Ryan Lukacovic leads UVa with 26 assists and is No. 2 on the squad with 46 points. Zed Williams rounds out the top UVa scorers with 20 goals, 17 assists for 37 points. Matt Barrett is saving 56.5 percent of shots between the pipes and is posting a 10.56 goals against average.
JHU head coach Dave Pietrmala is in his 15th season with the Blue Jays and is coming off an 11-5 season in 2014. JHU beat UVa in the NCAA first round and later fell to the eventual national champions, Duke, in the NCAA quarterfinal round. Johns Hopkins comes into Sunday’s game winners of five in a row, including the inaugural Big Ten Men’s Lacrosse championship. Ryan Brown leads the way with 54 goals and 64 points. Well Stanwick is second on the team with 59 points on 20 goals and a team-best 39 assists. Shack Stanwick has 20 goals and 19 assists, while Joe Tinney rounds out the top scorers with 22 goals. Eric Schneider is saving 46.7 percent of shots against him between the pipes and is posting a 10.27 goals against average.
The winner of Sunday’s game advances to the NCAA Quarterfinal round in Annapolis against the winner of Sunday night’s matchup between No. 2 seed Syracuse and Marist. The Annapolis quarterfinal is scheduled for May 17 at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium.
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