It was another successful week around Cavalier Nation, as regular seasons came to a close and the final players of the week were announced. A look around the various successful Virginia sports programs will show us immediately that Virginia is in a great position to make another run at a top ten Directors Cup finish.
Field Hockey: Virginia Field Hockey has been HOT all season long, and they were awarded with a No. 2 seed at the NCAA Regionals this upcoming weekend. And for just the second time in school history (the first being 1997), the school will play host for this first round. Virginia (18-3) takes on Atlantic-10 champion Richmond (14-8) at 11:30 a.m. this Saturday at University Hall Turf Field. Big Ten champion Michigan State (17-3) will meet Colonial Athletic Association champion Delaware (14-5) around 2:00 p.m. for the second game of the day. This will be UVA's 16th appearance in the tournament and the 4th straight under fourth-year head coach Michele Madison. Congratulations and good luck, ladies!
Swim & Dive: Virginia junior swimmer Matt McLean and freshman Lauren Perdue were tabbed the ACC's Performers of the Week. McLean has also been named the D-I Men's Swimmer of the Week by CollegeSwimming.com. McLean won both the 200 and 500 freestyle events in the men's 165-125 win against Kentucky over the weekend while Perdue took first place in three events in the women's 172-110 victory over the Wildcats. Perdue won the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle events for the second consecutive meet. She recorded a "B" qualifying time of 1:48.39 in the 200 and holds the top ACC time in each event so far this season. Congratulations, and good luck next weekend for a two-day meet at Penn State!
Cross Country: Redshirt freshman Sean Keveren has been named the ACC Men’s Cross Country Performer of the Week after he led all Virginia runners across the line at the Cavalier Open on Friday at Panorama Farms. The weekly honor marks the first of Keveren’s career and third for Virginia this season. Junior Emil Heineking earned the award last week, in addition to Sept. 21. The Cavaliers head to Louisville, Ky., for the 2009 NCAA Southeast Regional this Saturday. The men’s 10k race will begin at 10 a.m. and will be followed by the women’s 6k race at 11:15 a.m.
Men's Soccer: Seniors Neil Barlow and Ross LaBauex, sophomore Tony Tchani and freshman Will Bates earned second team All-ACC honors. In addition to being a second team selection, Bates was named to the All-Freshmen Team. Congratulations to these guys as they continue their journey today at noon in Cary, NC, as the fifth seed in the ACC Tournament facing fourth-seeded Maryland!
Women's Golf: Fourth-year Whitney Neuhauser was the top-ranked golfer in the VSGA Women's Division player rankings in the regular division throughout 2009, and has now been honored as the Virginia State Golf Association Women's Division golfer of the year. She won the VSGA Women's Amateur Championship at Danville Golf Club, posting a 20-hole victory over fellow U.Va. teammate Lauren Greenlief (Oakton) for her first triumph in a VSGA event. On the national stage, Neuhauser reached the round of 16 at the U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championship. Congratulations Whitney!
Women's Soccer: Finally, the Cavaliers (9-5-5) were an at-large selection and are making their 16th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and 22nd overall appearance. They face St. John’s in the opening round on Friday, with the host Nittany Lions playing Colgate in the other first round match at the site. Only North Carolina and Notre Dame have longer active streaks of tournament appearances. Good luck!