Under the tutelage of coach Michele Madison, the Virginia field hockey team has become increasingly competitive during its past four seasons. Last fall, however, the Cavaliers stumbled by their standards, finishing 14-9 (2-3 ACC) and losing to Wake Forest in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.\nThis year, expectations will once again run high in Charlottesville, as the team was picked to finish first in the ACC according to the conference coaches' pre-season poll. Madison, though, wants her players to back up the team's lofty projected ranking.\n"It doesn't really matter where you start in the beginning," Madison said. "It matters where you finish at the end, and we are focusing on being the best team that we can be."\nThat goal took a major hit with the departure of graduated seniors Lucy Meyers, Amy Desjadon and Inge Kaars Sijpesteijn - three of the program's most experienced players.\n"We will definitely miss them," senior back Lauren Elstein said. "It's just like every other year you lose some players and you gain some more. We are just focusing on the roster we have now of 22 and using everybody we have to the best of their ability."\nEven with the Cavaliers' loss of Meyers, Desjadon and Sijpesteijn, the team possesses a wide array of young, talented players looking to achieve national success. The team has just two seniors and four juniors, but even in the absence of experience, a national title remains a viable aim.\nTwo of Virginia's leading returning starters - sophomores Paige Selenski and Michelle Vittese - are among the most talented midfielders in the country. Selenski is the reigning ACC Freshman of the Year and National Rookie of the Year and again looks to lead the Cavalier attack. Vittese's freshman season, meanwhile, was cut short by injuries, but she still scored six goals and added six assists despite starting only 12 of 23 games. This year, both Selenski and Vittese were named to the preseason First Team All-ACC - the only sophomores to make the prestigious list.\nSupporting Selenski and Vittese will be freshman midfielder Tara Puffenberger, who competed with her new sophomore teammates at this summer's Junior World Cup in Boston. Although the United States finished eighth, the trio gained valuable experience competing at an elite level that could benefit the Cavaliers down the stretch. Sophomore midfielder Inga Stockel also participated in the Junior World Cup as a member of the German team, making Virginia's midfield among the most worldly at the NCAA level.\nIf its superior midfield will help the team this season, one area of potential concern, meanwhile, is at the goalkeeper position. After the departure of Desjadon and former junior Devon Burnley, the Cavaliers are left with three potential suitors for the job. Sophomore Adrienne Ostroff came on strong for the Cavaliers at the end of last season and will look to continue receiving considerable playing time, while freshman Amanda Crider also will compete for minutes. Boston University transfer junior Kim Kastuk, however, could prove to have the most experience of the three.\nKastuk, the America East Rookie of the Year in 2007, recorded seven shutouts and tied for twelfth in the nation with a 1.25 goals against average last season. The opposing goalkeeper when the Cavaliers played the Terriers last season, Kastuk held the Cavaliers to two goals and helped Boston prevail in penalty strokes.\n"It's still wide open," Madison said. "It's a matter of everything working itself out on the field."\nPlaying in the grueling ACC, the Cavaliers will soon know how prepared they are to face the elite teams on their schedule. If they are able to survive the tough conference's competition, they could have a chance to make a serious run at the program's first national title.\n"We are just trying to build on last year," Madison said. "You can't show up on game day and expect to beat everybody in the ACC"
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