CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The Virginia Cavaliers (7-0) are ranked No. 1 this week in both the USILA coaches and Nike/Inside Lacrosse media polls and will make the program’s second-ever trip to state of Ohio to face the Ohio State Buckeyes (3-3), who are receiving votes in both polls. The game will be contested in Ohio Stadium, the historic edifice nicknamed the ‘Horseshoe’. Faceoff is slated for 1 p.m. Live stats will be available and VirginiaSports.com.
Ohio State will provide a live video web stream online through the Buckeye Vision subscription service on OhioStateBuckeyes.com, with an audio-only feed on OhioStateSports.net.
UVa’s trip to Ohio State marks the fourth different state the Cavaliers have played in this season. The regular season slate contains six different states where the Cavaliers will play games, the most since the 2008 squad also played in six different states.
Saturday marks the sixth all-time meeting between the Cavaliers and Buckeyes in men’s lacrosse and the first in Columbus since 2000. UVa holds a 5-0 all-time advantage in the series and at one juncture scored 34-straight goals over a three-game span. The series began in 1968 in Charlottesville, but was discontinued until 1999.
UVa’s only other previous trip to Columbus was a 2000 appearance at Jesse Owen Memorial Stadium. At the time, the 1,855 fans that attended the 13-7 UVa triumph was an OSU program attendance record. Saturday’s game makes the second time a UVa athletics team has contested an event in the historic “Horseshoe,” as the UVa football team played the Buckeyes in the venue over 78 years ago on Oct. 7, 1933, in what was a 75-0 setback.
Reigning ACC Offensive Player of the Week Steele Stanwick currently leads UVa with 22 assists and 30 points and his 3.14 assists per game ranks No. 1 in the nation. Stanwick sits No. 5 all-time at UVa with 114 career assists. No. 4, Jay Connor, is 15 assists away at 129. Chris Bocklet has a team-high 16 goals and 117 career scores, needing two to tie Danny Glading for No. 7 all-time at UVa in career goals. Chris LaPierre has been stellar between the lines, picking up a team-best 38 ground balls, needing 19 more to become the 31st Cavalier to reach the 200 career ground ball plateau. Rob Fortunato is saving 62.4 percent of shots against him and posting a 6.84 goals against average in between the pipes.
Ohio State’s head coach Nick Myers is in his fourth season and returns 26 letterwinners and eight starters off of last year’s squad. After topping then-No. 5 Denver in Jacksonville, Fla., 10-9, on Feb. 19, the Buckeyes have dropped three-straight home games to even their season mark to 3-3. Logan Schuss leads the offense for Ohio State, posing a team-best 19 goals and 25 points. The next closest offensive leader is Brock Sorensen with seven goals. Schuss, Tyler Frederick and Mick Liddil lead the Buckeyes with six assists apiece. Greg Dutton is saving 56.3 percent of shots and posting a 6.92 goals against average in between the pipes.
Virginia returns to action on March 24 for the annual rivalry with the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays. Currently ranked this week No. 2 in the nation by both the media and coaches poll, Johns Hopkins and UVa will meet for the 85th time in a series that began in 1904. The Cavaliers and Blue Jays for the eighth time fight for the Doyle Smith Cup, the spoils of the regular season victor. Faceoff is set for 2 p.m. inside Klöckner Stadium and the contest will be televised on ESPNU in HD.