Division I Men :      April 1, 2006 [ The Game Story]
Maryland 5 Virginia 15 Scoring: Scoring: Maxwell Ritz Xander Ritz Bill Mcglone Joe Walters David Tamberrino Brendan Healy (2, 2) (2, 0) (1, 0) (0, 1) (0, 1) (0, 1) Ben Rubeor Drew Thompson Danny Glading Matt Poskay Matt Ward Garrett Billings Jj Morrissey Kyle Dixon Drew Garrison Foster Gilbert Jack Riley (4, 0) (2, 1) (2, 1) (2, 0) (2, 0) (2, 0) (1, 1) (0, 1) (0, 1) (0, 1) (0, 1) Saves: Saves: Harry Alford Jason Carter 12  (0.500) 3  (0.500) Kip Turner Michael Petit 15  (0.833) 6  (0.750) Current Record :     (6-2) Current Record :     (10-0) Team Page For 2006 Team Page For 2006       The Game Story:

If there were any lingering doubts as to who the best team in Division I is, Virginia emphatically put them to rest today in College Park. UVA netted their first goal only 15 seconds into the game and never looked back as the ‘Hoos completely dominated Maryland on route to a 15-5 shellacking in Byrd Stadium. Any momentum the Terps might have grasped was denied by Kip Turner who had an incredible 15 save performance, including eight in the first quarter to keep the Terps from getting things going.

The Cavaliers’ athleticism was on display all over the field. Offensively, they had little trouble drawing double teams and then moving the ball to find the open man. Defensively, the very active unit swallowed up Maryland’s big four, holding the combination of Walters, X. Ritz, McGlone, and Healy to five points between them. However, between the lines was where the real damage was done, as Virginia was lethal when pushing transition opportunities and rode the Terps aggressively throughout the game. Maryland was completely inept in handling the full field pressure and repeatedly turned the ball over in the clearing game.

After winning the opening faceoff, Virginia wasted no time getting the ball upfield. Kyle Dixon found Drew Thompson open near the restraining line, and Thompson stepped in for a sick time and room shot into the upper right corner. A minute later, following a sloppy pseudo-possession by the Terps, Virginia netted their second when Matt Poskay scored on an unassisted goal. Virginia scored three more unanswered goals [Ben Rubeor, Danny Gladding, Rubeor] before Maryland got on the board when Max Ritz found his brother Xander. After one quarter of play, UVA was up 5-1.

The second quarter was all Virginia as they scored all four goals of the period. Gladding netted his second on a nice solo effort, followed shortly with Thompson scoring his second. Rubeor completed a first half hat-trick when Gladding found him on man-up and Matt Ward finished the first half scoring. The teams broke for the half with Maryland trailing 9-1.

Having been completely dominated in the first half, Maryland needed to get something going early in the second half to get back in the game. Virginia had other plans. Within 41 seconds, UVA had rattled of two quick goals and basically closed the book on Maryland’s chances. Thompson found Poskay for the first one, and do-it-all midi JJ Morrissey followed 20 seconds later. UVA scored two more unanswered goals to complete an 8-0 run from early in the second quarter until midway through the third, and had a 13-1 lead with 20 minutes remaining. The reserves for both clubs began to see the field at this point and Maryland outscored UVA 4-2 over the final 20 minutes.

Virginia is now 10-0, and except a tight game with Princeton, no one has come within five goals of them this year. They aren’t just beating teams – they are burying them, and have clearly demonstrated the killer instinct to put teams away instead of letting them hang around. If they continue to play like this, it’d be hard to imagine anyone else hoisting the championship trophy come Memorial Day.