COLLEGE PREVIEW 2013 NCAA DIVISION I MEN TOP 20 VIRGINIA
2012 RECORD: 12-4 (2-1 ACC) COACH: DOM STARSIA (21ST YEAR)
CAVALIERS 9 Since Dom Starsia became the coach
at Virginia in 1993, the Cavaliers have been defi ned by elite attackmen who could either turn the corner or throw perfectly timed spot feeds.
But with Steele Stanwick gone, the
2013 Wahoos have, for the fi rst time in two decades, more question marks than star power behind the goal. “We’ve always had that really good behind guy — that ‘X’ guy — and we don’t have that right this minute,” Starsia said. Nick O’Reilly likely will take over for Stanwick as the
primary distributor. Two years ago, O’Reilly was the toast of championship weekend, scoring eight points in two games to help Virginia secure an improbable NCAA title. But he was suspended for the 2012 season due to an undisclosed violation. “He’s a great kid. He screwed up and paid a very severe price,” Starsia said. “The whole program did.” Mark Cockerton will slide into the lefty spot. An Ontario native with slick hockey hands, Cockerton struggled as a sophomore. “We had the one Canadian who couldn’t score,” Starsia said. “He looks like he’s ready to be the player we all hoped he would be.”
Feb 16 Drexel Feb 19 VMI Feb 23 at Stony Brook Feb 26 Mt. St. Mary’s Mar 1 at Syracuse Mar 5 Vermont Mar 9 Cornell Mar 16 Ohio State Mar 23 vs. Johns Hopkins* Mar 30 Maryland Apr 6 North Carolina Apr 13 at Duke Apr 20 Bellarmine
* at M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore
Most intriguing, James Pannell — Cornell attackman Rob Pannell’s brother, referred to as “young Pannell” by Starsia — is expected to start.
The fi replug has shown an explosive fi rst step and a knack for getting to the cage. Still, he’s a freshman. With the new NCAA rules and a stable full of athletic two- way middies, but without that Tewaaraton-caliber presence on attack, Virginia plans to spend more time pushing transition and attacking from anywhere — and everywhere. “We don’t have to work really hard to convince the guys to get up and down the fi eld,” Starsia said. “But we also have the right people to do that. If we can keep the game at a high tempo, that will help us.”
But it will be on O’Reilly to run the point odd-man rushes and quick strikes. “I have been playing behind, and it’s not just my job, but I have to know when to slow it down and when to push it when it comes through ‘X,’” O’Reilly said. Starsia said he believes many of the team’s perceived weaknesses could become strengths by May. “We need Mark Cockerton to be
terrifi c. We need Rob Emery to be a force. We need James Pannell to be the ACC Rookie of the Year,” Starsia said. “If those kinds of things happen — and they’re all very possible — then we’ll be tough to handle.”
— J.C. 38 LACROSSE MAGAZINE February 2013 >> Nick O’Reilly
RIVAL COACHES SAY “I always worry about Virginia when things down in Charlottesville are quiet, and they’re quiet right now… Chris LaPierre is a game changer. Can Rob Emery continue to grow as a scoring threat? … LaPierre, Emery and Tucker — that’s a pretty damn good midfi eld.”
TOP RETURNER M Chris LaPierre (Sr.) LaPierre has established himself as a dominant defensive midfi elder and between- the-lines savant. Division I’s resident ploughhorse will add “fi rst-line midfi elder” to his long list of duties. “He’s going to play more offense in 2013 than his fi rst three years combined,” Starsia said.
X-FACTOR M Charlie Streep (Sr.) A former All-American attackman at Bucknell, Streep missed last year with a torn ACL. Now a graduate student at Virginia, Streep dealt with some lingering injuries in the fall but could provide the Cavaliers with an explosive initiator in the half-fi eld.
Senior Matt White boasts the kind of versatility invokes comparisons to Cavaliers legends A.J. Shannon and Matt Poskay.
52
PROJECTED STARTERS
A James Pannell (Fr.) G: 43 A: 31 (at Smithtown W. High)
A Mark Cockerton (Jr.) G: 16 A: 5
A Nick O’Reilly (Jr.) G: 8
A: 13 (from 2011)
M Rob Emery (Jr.)* G: 24 A: 5
M Ryan Tucker (So.) G: 13 A: 2
M Chris LaPierre (Sr.) G: 4
A: 2
FO Mick Parks (So.) FO%: 52.6 GB: 26
LSM: Tanner Ottenbreit (So.) GB: 1 CT: 2
D Harry Prevas (Sr.)* GB: 32 CT: 14
D Scott McWilliams (Jr.)* GB: 29 CT: 11
D Greg Danseglio (So.) GB: 7 CT: 4
G Dan Marino (Fr.) GAA: 4.30 (at Garden City High)
*returning starters TELLING NUMBER
graduated Steele Stanwick, Chris Bocklet and Colin Briggs. Expect more balanced scoring. A Publication of US Lacrosse
Percentage of UVA’s 306 points last year that came from
©LEE WEISSMAN (NO); ©VIRGINIA (CL); ©MATT RILEY (MW)
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