Three national championships, five ACC titles, 54 All-Americans. The Virginia women’s lacrosse team boasts a decorated history, and if a No. 4 preseason rank and three returning first-team All-Americans are any indication, this season should be a continuation of the program’s tradition of excellence.
The Cavaliers are coming off a disappointing season during which they lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to a North Carolina team they had already beaten twice — once in the regular season and again in the ACC Tournament. The squad enters this season excited for a chance to redeem itself and make a run at the national championship in May.
“We have that date — May 24 — in our heads, so we are looking forward to that,” senior midfielder Blair Weymouth said. “Hopefully all of the hard work will pay off in May.”
It will be no easy task for Virginia, though, as the Cavaliers’ schedule boasts a slew of talented teams, including preseason No. 1 Northwestern, winner of four consecutive national championships and Virginia’s opponent in this regular season’s finale. The Cavaliers are also up for an early season test Feb. 27 when they travel to No. 2 Syracuse, one of the six teams Virginia will face in the regular season that participated in last year’s NCAA Tournament.
“It is something we do every year,” Virginia coach Julie Myers said. “I don’t think we look at our schedule and feel overwhelmed by it; if anything, we feel excited by it.”
The ACC is arguably the best conference in the country, boasting four teams ranked in the top 10 nationally.
“We know we are going to be taking our lumps and giving our lumps,” Myers said. “We just have to make the most of it. To have a tough schedule and to be in a tough conference makes it easy to work hard every day of the year to make sure you are preparing for something awesome.”
Last season, Virginia managed to escape the difficult conference schedule with an impressive 4-1 record — the only loss coming at the hands of then-No. 5 Maryland in College Park. The Cavaliers have proved themselves to be the gold standard in the ACC in recent years, winning the last three conference crowns, but they will have to remain focused throughout the season if they wish to achieve their ambitious goal of claiming the program’s fourth national championship. Myers works hard to instill in her players the importance of daily dedication in practice and an overall appreciation for the game of lacrosse that she hopes will continue to yield success.
“She has been a part of the program so long,” junior midfielder Brittany Kalkstein said. “It is just a constant we have had throughout [the years]. We can always count on her and her abilities to coach us.”
Last year, Myers was named the ACC Coach of the Year for the fourth time during her tenure at Virginia. She has helped the Cavaliers reach the NCAA Tournament in all 13 seasons of her time as head coach, an accomplishment no other current coach in Division I has managed to duplicate. With Myers, the Cavaliers have made it to the NCAA Championship game seven times, winning the title most recently in 2004.
While Myers’ team is loaded with talent at every position, the players still need to take the season one game at a time. If they wish to make good their lofty goals, the Cavaliers will have to overcome an intense schedule and go unscathed in the NCAA Tournament.
“I think that coming ready to play will be a big focus — knowing that we are a good team and not being afraid to kick some butt,” Weymouth said.
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