The 2020 men’s lacrosse season is kicking off, with Virginia set to open the season soon. So what better time to preview their title defense? This year’s edition looks every bit as good on paper as the one that brought home the hardware from Philly last year, and has a real chance to repeat as champs. Let’s take a closer look.
Returning Stars
Michael Kraus – Kraus returns for his fourth and final season in Charlottesville. He had a fantastic year again, being named to the All-ACC team and the USILA All-American third-team, despite missing three games with injury. He was also a Tewaaraton nominee for the second year in a row, and became the third-fastest Hoo ever to 100 goals. Kraus’s ability to score from nearly impossible angles adds another dimension to the offense, and he will understandably play a large role in the success of that offense and ultimately the team.
Ian Laviano – Not a lot is going to affect a guy that scored three game-winning goals last season, least of all the NCAA tournament. Laviano had 9 goals in the tournament, including essential goals against Duke to pull Virginia back from the dead, sending the game to overtime before ending it himself. The 5′ 8″ attacker has seemingly-boundless energy on and off the field. Says Lars Tiffany, “The man never hits the off switch on the lacrosse field, where he moves faster without the ball than anyone else whether he is cutting to an opening in the defense or hunting the ball during our riding phase.” Laviano will work well with Kraus up top as he looks to continue on his great play in his third year.
Matt Moore – Matt Moore’s 2019 awards include: All-ACC, NCAA All-Tournament team, ACC All-Tournament team, and USILA All-American (honorable mention). That’s a pretty respectable list, to say the least. After making the full-time switch from midfielder to attack last season, Moore led the ACC in both assists and total points, recording 43 and 89, respectably. He also became the first Hoo ever to exceed 40 in both goals and assists in a season, and had the most overall points in a season by a Virginia player in history. Bottom line? Matt Moore is pretty damn good.
Dox Aitken – Going through all of Dox’s 2019 accolades might take all day, so just trust me when I say that they are impressive. The consensus first-team Al-American midfielder returns for his final season, and it promises to be a great one. He’ll be a key part of UVA’s midfield yet again, and has a real shot at becoming the first midfielder to receive the Tewaaraton in 11 years.
John Fox – An often underlooked–yet no less important than his teammates–player, Fox is a great representative for UVA lacrosse. Says Tiffany on Fox, “The captain embodies everything that is expected of the role.” The short-stick defensive middie played in all of Virginia’s 20 games last year. He will play a big role on the defensive side.
Jared Conners – One of UVA’s four captains, Conners can do it all. He picked up 57 ground balls and caused 27 turnovers at long-stick middie, and can score it when the opportunity presents itself, scoring six times a year ago. The 6′ 5″ senior was named to the USILA All-American first team, and the Inside Lacrosse second team. The defense will rely on him to play well again this year.
Alex Rode – After being benched in favor of Patrick Burkinshaw (who subsequently entered the transfer portal) in Virginia’s trip to Princeton, Rode emerged a different player. He was even named The Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA tournament. Rode took leaps and bounds last year, especially concerning the communication aspect of the game, and will likely build upon that in his third year.
What the experts say
NCAA.com – The NCAA’s website ranks the Hoos tops in the nation, saying that “[t]he defending national champions have high odds to repeat in 2020, but the Cavaliers field a slightly different team this coming spring. Though Virginia returns most of its offense in Matt Moore, Ian Laviano, Michael Kraus and Dox Aitken, the program loses key midfielder Ryan Conrad and the sharpshooting Mikey Herring, who scored 17 goals in 2019. Don’t forget about the defensive third either, which loses some experience with the departure of Logan Greco. But the Cavaliers maintain a skilled, well-balanced squad” (Ben Bokun and Jeff Donley – NCAA.com).
Inside Lacrosse – They rank Virginia second behind only Penn State, and point out that “[t]he 2019 champs were Comeback Cavs, now having lost less than 20% of its offensive output they are the team to beat in the ACC, returning headliners and speed across the board. Playoff finish saw all cylinders firing at maximize efficiency. The offense will be stronger and deeper in 2020 with swarms of elite contributors like Michael Kraus, Matt Moore, Dox Aitken and Ian Laviano” (Quint Kessenich – InsideLacrosse).
USLacrosse Magazine – They similarly put Virginia second to Penn State, an have some interesting things to say: ” The playbook for a program building itself up — either for the first time, or after a stagnant stretch — is almost cliché. Start from a point of uncomfortable mediocrity, show some promise after a year or two, go through some postseason heartbreak(s) and then finally get back to the top. Virginia gleefully skipped over the “postseason heartbreak” step in coach Lars Tiffany’s third year, snipping the nets after one of its most complete games of the season. Here’s the scary part: It wouldn’t have been remotely surprising at the end of the 2018 season to think Virginia could be the best team in the country in 2020. It’s still possible. Think about that collection of offensive talent: Michael Kraus, Ian Laviano and Matt Moore will all be back on attack, and Dox Aitken will anchor the midfield — and that group should have the ball plenty thanks to faceoff man Petey LaSalla. The defense took a considerable step forward this spring, and two defensemen (Kyle Kology and Cade Saustad), first team All-American long pole Jared Conners and goalie/championship weekend hero Alex Rode are all back. The Cavaliers have some holes to fill, such as resilient fifth-year senior defenseman Logan Greco, high IQ shooter Mikey Herring and do-everything midfielder Ryan Conrad, who turned in a brilliant final month as a dangerous offensive option and an exceptional faceoff wing. The title game rout aside, Virginia wasn’t a juggernaut; it went 5-0 in overtime games, and needed two unlikely rallies just to make it to Memorial Day. Here’s guessing the Cavaliers aren’t quite so fortunate in tight games next year — but also that they won’t be in nearly as many while playing from ahead a lot more frequently” (Patrick Stevens – USLacrosse Magazine).
SB Nation – The massive sport news outlet’s college lacrosse blog repeats many things that the others said: “The 2019 title winners bring back the core four of Moore, Kraus, Aitken, and Laviano on offense along with Jared Conners, Will Rock, and Cade Saustad to lead what was an improved defense in the second half of the season. Petey Lasalla looks like a solid faceoff guy moving forward, but they also bring in top-ranked FOGO Gavin Tygh and top-ranked attackman Connor Shellenberger to add to an already electric offense. Ryan Conrad is absolutely irreplaceable as he impacted the game in a variety of ways, but there’s still too much talent on this team not to expect another Final Four run” (Liquid_Smoke – College Crosse).
USILA Coaches Poll – Virginia comes in at the number 1 spot in the preseason USILA Coaches Poll. They received 12 first place votes, with Penn State getting 4 and Yale the other two. In addition, all five ACC teams made the top 10, with Duke at 5, Notre Dame at 7, Syracuse at 8, and North Carolina rounding out the group at 10.
Breaking down the schedule
Virginia faces the usual subjects in their 2020 schedule, with a couple of added twists. A lot of the teams that UVA usually schedules that are meant as high-level tests have dropped off recently. Additionally, there’s a couple of new teams on the schedule that the Hoos haven’t seen in a while. It’s an interesting blend of opponents this year, and will provide plenty of opportunities.
FEB 8 (SAT) vs #14 Loyola (MD.) – The usual opener in the past few years, it’s a game that’s almost always entertaining, and a good measuring stick for both teams. Loyola lost the best player in the country, Pat Spencer, after last year, hence the lower preseason ranking. With him, the Greyhounds walloped the Hoos, winning by a lopsided 17-9 score on their home field. It will be interesting to see how they stack up against the defending national champs this year. It will be a good one for three quarters, but expect the Hoos to pull away in the fourth.
The Pick: Virginia 14-10
FEB 15 (SAT) vs #20 Lehigh – Andrew Pettit is back for Lehigh after missing the entirety of the 2019 season with an injury. The prior year, he found the back of the net an impressive 46 times. Going a whole season without playing is a long time, but he’s had enough time to recover. While he may give the defense some trouble in the first half, the Hoos will figure it out in the second. Lehigh will never really be in the game, and the final score will be kind to them.
The Pick: Virginia 13-10
FEB 22 (SAT) vs Princeton – Princeton was down last year, missing the tournament, but that didn’t stop them from giving the Hoos a heck of a tough game. Patrick Burkinshaw was fantastic in his first and only career start with 24 saves (he’s since transferred to Penn). For the Tigers, Michael Sowers had himself a day, something that should be expected again this year. Ultimately, Ian laviano scored the game winning goal in the first of three straight overtime games for the Hoos. It won’t be that close this year.
The Pick: Virginia 16-11
FEB 25 (TUE) vs High Point – High Point shocked the lacrosse world last year by coming from nowhere to defeat Virginia and Duke within the space of three weeks. The Hoos had a chance to tie it at the end, but Michael Kraus threw the ball straight at the goalkeeper. Regardless, all signs point to that High Point team being a one-year wonder. The Hoos should cruise to victory.
The Pick: Virginia 13-8
MAR 1 (SUN) vs Air Force – It will be the first meeting between the two schools in 16 years. It will also cap a five-game home stand to start off the season, not exactly the greatest situation for a team’s growth. The Falcons were 10-5 last year, losing in the SoCon semifinals in an ugly 7-6 game against Richmond. Their matchup with the Hoos will go a little differently.
The Pick: Virginia 14-9
MAR 8 (SUN) at Brown – It was a classic “Cardiac Cavs” performance in a fantastic game against the Bears last year. The Hoos trailed by a score of 12-8 early in the fourth quarter, and 13-10 with six minutes to go. Virginia responded with four straight goals–the final two from Michael Kraus–in a 14-13 OT victory. It will be another scare this year in their first road game, but Virginia will prevail in the end and improve to 6-0.
The Pick: Virginia 12-11
MAR 14 (SAT) at #4 Maryland – Maryland fans still haven’t recovered from Virginia’s incredible comeback and subsequent win in last year’s Elite 8. After going down by five goals with 10 minutes to go, the Hoos scored six straight and won the game in overtime. The game-tying goal kinda sorta hit the crossbar, not the net, but I subscribe to the theory that Virginia would’ve scored either way having recovered the ball. This is a great test for Virginia before ACC play, and they drop it in overtime.
The Pick: Maryland 14-13 (OT)
MAR 19 (THU) at #7 Notre Dame – In 2019, Virginia played Notre Dame twice, once in the regular season and once in the ACCT championship. The regular season game followed the same script as so many others, with Notre Dame taking a five-goal lead, and Virginia going on an 8-1 run to end the game and win it. In the ACCT final, Virginia dominated the entire game, destroying the Irish 10-4. It won’t be as dominant, but Virginia will pick up an important ACC road win.
The Pick: Virginia 15-13
MAR 28 (SAT) vs Richmond – Richmond is a program on the rise, but that doesn’t mean that they pose any threat to the best program in the country at the moment. Last year’s game was never close, with the 16-7 final score not as bad as it could have been. Virginia wins it easily and improves to 8-1.
The Pick: Virginia 15-7
APR 2 (THU) at #10 North Carolina – At 10, Carolina is the lowest ranked ACC team. That’s ridiculous. The Heels were down last year, going 8-7, and didn’t make the NCAA tournament. But that didn’t stop them from giving Virginia two one-goal games, the latter of which was another four-goal comeback from the Hoos. It’s another close game this year, and Carolina takes it in OT.
The Pick: North Carolina 13-12 (OT)
APR 9 (THU) vs #5 Duke – Duke handled Virginia pretty easily in their regular season meeting a year ago, and looked like they would do the same on Championship Weekend. They led by 4 in the third quarter, and by 2 with two minutes to go. Ian Laviano’s goal with 15 seconds tied it, and he would go on to finish it as well in 2OT. Duke has had Virginia’s number recently, winning 11 straight prior to that game. Maybe it’s time for that to change.
The Pick: Virginia 12-9
APR 11 (SAT) vs Utah – It was a total shellacking in 2019, as a Utah program in its infancy was slaughtered by the Hoos. It was 8-0 20 minutes in, and 13-2 at halftime. Virginia led 17-2 with 3 minutes left in the third before Lars Tiffany pulled his starters. Expect another repeat performance this year.
The Pick: Virginia 18-7
APR 18 (SAT) vs #8 Syracuse – It went overlooked by some, but this game last year was what really started it all. 2-2 on the season, the Hoos went into the Carrier Dome and trailed 13-9 with 10 minutes to go. After clawing their way back from the dead, they trailed by one with a minute to go. Relatively silent for the game, Michael Kraus somehow wrapped himself around the crease and threw in a incredible diving, one handed finish to tie the game. Kraus would go on to assist Mikey Herring’s game winning goal. In another great rivalry game, Virginia closes out the regular season with a win over Syracuse.
The Pick: Virginia 14-13
If these picks somehow come true, the Hoos will finish 11-2 in the regular season. The season kicks off on Saturday, February 8 as Virginia heads to Loyola.