The Virginia men's lacrosse team plans to make its presence in the ACC known tonight when the Cavaliers meet Maryland in their Conference opener in College Park at 8 p.m.
No. 2 Virginia (4-1) has won four straight games including Saturday's 16-8 romp over Johns Hopkins, while No. 6 Maryland (6-1, 1-1 ACC) has prevailed in each of its last five meetings and comes off a 10-9 comeback thriller over North Carolina Saturday.
Neither team has lost a game since March 4, when the Cavs lost to top-ranked Syracuse and the Terps fell to ACC rival Duke.
"Maryland's off to a great start" Virginia coach Dom Starsia said. "We need to get off to a good start in conference play."
The Cavs have beaten all of their opponents handily since the Syracuse loss, ousting all four teams by at least seven goals. Maryland, on the other hand, has won three straight one-goal games against Towson, Cornell and North Carolina, gaining some close-game experience which could prove to be priceless in tonight's top-10 matchup.
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Maryland senior attackman Marcus La-Chapelle and junior midfielder Chris Malone, who each have chipped in 12 goals on the season, guide the Terp's balanced offensive attack. Redshirt freshman Mike Mollot, who averages three points per game, has chalked up 15 assists for the Terrapins.
Maryland "has good balance on offense, so there's not going to be a single matchup to dictate the game," Starsia said. Goalie Derek "Kenney will need to play well, and we'll need to score some goals. They're dangerous at every spot and they don't have a weak link."
Virginia attackman Drew McKnight, the second-leading scorer in the country, likely will supply some of those goals for the Cavs. McKnight has scored an outstanding 28 points in just five games and is the ACC's leading assist man and second-leading goal scorer. Senior midfielder and fellow captain Jay Jalbert backs McKnight.
"I think talent-wise we might have a little bit of an edge," Jalbert said. "But Maryland always plays us well. Last year we beat them pretty handily, but they always come out and play hard."
McKnight and the Cavs' offensive strike will have to deal with Maryland's solid defense, which boasts one of the nation's top goalies. Junior Pat McGinnis carries a remarkable 6.67 goals against average and a .674 save percentage, allowing just 44 goals in seven games. Virginia will also meet defensive midfielder Jeff Shirk, regarded as one of the nation's toughest hitters.
"This is an important game," Starsia said. "Maryland's off to a great start, and we need to get off to a good start in conference play. They match up physically well with us, as much as any of the teams that we play. We're going to have to play our best to win it up there."
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