When Virginia men’s lacrosse’s current class of graduate students stepped onto Grounds in 2018, the lacrosse program was desperately looking to find its footing. The Cavaliers, having already captured three national championships since 2000, found themselves in unfamiliar territory after winning only one of 19 ACC contests from 2013 to 2017. But as the 2018 class graduates, they leave behind a legacy of winning, proven by two more national championship trophies for the program.
Gone were the days of the late 2000s, where players like the legendary attackman Steele Stanwick willed Virginia to three consecutive Final Four appearances and one national championship in 2011. Following in Stanwick and others’ footsteps proved more difficult than expected, and the 2018 Cavaliers succumbed to a cutthroat ACC featuring Duke, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Syracuse and Maryland.
In 2016, Virginia parted ways with Coach Dom Starsia, who amassed four national titles and coached for 24 seasons in Charlottesville. Coincidentally, Starsia’s replacement Coach Lars Tiffany would share his alma mater of Brown University and played under the tutelage of Virginia’s ex-coach from 1986 to 1990.
Following an 8-7 record in his first year at the helm in 2017, Tiffany led the Cavaliers to a 12-6 finish and secured their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2015.
Tiffany also made his mark by bringing in some of the most talented classes in all of college lacrosse, starting when the coach convinced two five-star players to come to Charlottesville in the 2017 class. But the next batch of high school players — this time with four five-star players — truly shined in the Virginia program. The recruits played a large part in Virginia’s 2019 national championship — the school’s first in eight years. Tiffany was able to play into the historic nature of the Cavalier program and convince players to be the group to bring Virginia back to its national championship ceiling.
Four first-year Cavaliers saw extensive playing time en route to a national title victory over Yale. Faceoff man Petey LaSalla started as a true freshman, picked up an ACC-high 100 ground balls and won the game’s last eight face-offs in a monumental win over Duke in the national semifinals. Defenseman Cade Saustad started nineteen of Virginia’s 20 games, finished the season as a first-teamer on the freshman All-America list and was recognized on the NCAA All-Tournament team.
Attacker Xander Dickson and two-way midfielder Jeff Conner combined for 33 points and contributed to an offense already ripe with proven stars, while shortstick defensive midfielder Grayson Sallade would blossom into a three-year starter at the position following the 2019 campaign.
Waiting in the wings was Canadian attacker Payton Cormier, who redshirted his freshman season, but tallied 19 points in only six games before the pandemic struck in 2020.
This core, which also features midfielder Jack Simmons — a graduate transfer from Notre Dame — possesses a laundry list of accomplishments almost unbelievable on paper. LaSalla finished his Virginia career as a five-year starter and the winningest face-off man in program history. Saustad — a four-year starter himself — garnered a USILA First Team All-American selection in 2023 and made two NCAA All-Tournament team appearances in 2019 and 2021.
Conner served as the “glue guy” for Virginia lacrosse, taking on the role of a two-way midfielder in an era increasingly marked by specialization. Dickson — who contributed to the Cavaliers’ success in his first three seasons as a midfielder — developed into a Second Team All-American in 2023 following a transition to attack.
The attacker from Connecticut posted a program record 61 goals in his final campaign in Charlottesville and averaged 3.59 tallies per game — good for fifth in the nation. Right behind him on that list was Cormier, a bullish attacker who will likely surpass Doug Knight’s career goals record of 165 in 2024, his final year of eligibility.
Cormier — a three-time Honorable Mention All-American — has posted 159 goals in his last three seasons at Virginia. He and Dickson enjoyed career highs in goals and assists in their final campaign together, helping propel the Cavaliers’ scoring offense to a No. 1 ranking nationally for much of the season.
With Cormier the only member of the 2018 class likely sticking around, it is time to thank this prolific group for raising the standard for Virginia lacrosse and laying a foundation for future successes. With strengths in all facets of the game — faceoffs, scoring and defense — these six players, plus Tiffany, played major roles in the Cavaliers’ titles in 2019 and 2021 and established a dynasty built to last long after they leave. Cavalier fans will always fill Klockner Stadium for lacrosse games — now, the players on the field are once again at the pinnacle of the sport, even after the 2018 class plays its final game.
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