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Upstate New York exacted a little revenge on the University of Virginia today. After handling Syracuse last weekend (in both basketball and lacrosse), the Cornell Big Red managed to put the first blemish on the men's lacrosse team's record in a sloppy, cold game. The loss drops the Hoos to 6-1 (1-0 ACC).
Virginia struck first by virtue of back to back goals by (surprise) James Pannell. The Hoos built to a 5-2 lead in the second quarter, but it was all Cornell (5-0) after that. The Big Red rattled off nine straight goals to take an 11-5 lead, and from there Dom Starsia's squad was just trying to play catch up.
Cornell eked the Hoos in ground balls (36-33) and shots (43-38), and the two teams split faceoffs evenly with 12 a piece.
Virginia had some serious penalty issues this game, giving the Big Red seven man up opportunities (they converted on only two, however). The Hoos were unable to take advantage of their own extra man attempts late in the game, going one of four on the afternoon.
The biggest issue for the Cavaliers has to be the turnovers. They coughed the ball up 17 times (Cornell had 20!! 20!), and went an abysmal 16-21 on the clears. For a team that prides themselves on protecting the ball and executing flawless clears, Coach will certainly not be happy with those numbers.
Mark Cockerton kept being Canadian and scored yet another hat trick, his fourth game in a row with at least three goals. He has 18 goals in that span, and 25 on the season.
Pannell finished with two goals (he has 24 on the season), and midfielders Ryan Tucker and Rob Emery also chipped in two each.
Owen Van Arsdale continued his impressive 2014 season, notching three assists. He is now third on the team in points (24) behind seven goals and 17 assists.
Short stick defensive middie Bobby Hill had two caused turnovers, and goalie Matt Barrett had nine saves in cage.
In the long run, a game like this will likely do more good than harm, but the season certainly is not getting any easier for the Cavaliers. Virginia travels to South Bend on Sunday to face Notre Dame in what is now an ACC matchup, and each one is extremely important. The game will be on ESPNU at 5pm ET.