"The next couple of days we need to rough our kids up and get them ready for Boston College," Virginia coach Julie Myers said, expressing what seems to be the consensus of the entire women's lacrosse team for this weekend's game. The No. 4 Virginia squad will take on the unranked Eagles Saturday at 1 p.m. at Klöckner Stadium.
Virginia (9-2, 3-1 ACC) will look to hand Boston College (3-6, 2-1 ACC) its second ACC loss in four games.
Boston College, despite attempting just 12 shots and nine in regulation, beat No. 7 North Carolina over the weekend 5-4 in double overtime. The Eagles were paced in that match by two goals and an assist from junior attacker and captain Jenna McCabe. Also highlighting the effort was junior goalkeeper Katie Monaghan, who had 13 saves and allowed just four goals, enough to earn her Player of the Week honors from Inside Lacrosse magazine.
Virginia has its own Player of the Week performer in the ACC in junior attacker Jenny Hauser, who scored 11 goals in Virginia's past three matches. Those scores have elevated the transfer from Boston University to 23 goals on the season, enough to lead the team. Her record of 31 points is second on the team behind junior midfielder Ashley McCulloch, who has amassed 12 goals and 21 assists for 33 points on the year.
Saturday's game will feature two differing styles in Virginia's high-powered, yet disciplined offense and the Eagles' more physical style.
"They're very physical, unlike the ODU game where it was pretty clean with fouls and not a lot of cards," Myers said. "There's going to be a lot of cards come Saturday."
The fiery Virginia offense will be tested Saturday and must make the most of its opportunities as it did in its 15-3 victory against Old Dominion Wednesday.
"We wanted to not take too many chances but just be really solid," Myers said of the performance. "We did a great job in showing discipline."
Another factor in the game will be possession time, a statistic Virginia has dominated during its current three-game win streak.
"They've had all week to prepare for us; I think we will see a team that wants to dominate possession time," Myers said of the Eagles. "They're going to be really picky when they go to goal. They don't mind shooting less than 10 times in a game and that's hard for us. We get really frustrated."
Because of Boston College's deliberate attack, the team reiterated Myers' emphasis on preparation leading into Saturday.
"They're always pretty rough, and they just beat UNC," sophomore midfielder Caity Whiteley said. "I'm sure practice is going to be hard before the game."
The contest will mark Virginia's final ACC match of the season. The Cavaliers seek to improve to 4-1, a mark that would ensure Virginia at least a share of the ACC regular season crown. After this game, Virginia will have three non-conference opponents left, and Boston College will have one more conference game to play. Maryland could also factor in the conference title picture, as it still must face North Carolina and Virginia Tech to defend its 2-1 ACC record.
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