U-Va. Works the Clock in Win Over Maryland

CHARLOTTESVILLE, April 25 -- Virginia accomplished several things during a nearly five-minute possession against Maryland early in the fourth quarter of their ACC men's lacrosse tournament quarterfinal. But most important, it ensured that Virginia would hold on to its 11-8 victory before 3,507 at Klockner Stadium.

The time consumed on the possession proved vital, erasing Maryland's momentum after it closed to 9-6 on a goal by sophomore Bryn Holmes with 3.3 seconds left in the third quarter.

Virginia took a 10-6 lead after a goal by senior Ben Rubeor with 14 minutes 14 seconds to play. Maryland (8-5) turned over the ball on its next possession, with 13:28 left. It did not get the ball back until 8 1/2 minutes remained.

In between, Virginia held the ball, was warned for stalling, had an extra-man opportunity, did not score, continued to hold onto the ball and all the while stayed inside the offensive box to avoid a stalling call.

Rubeor scored into an empty net after Maryland goalkeeper Brian Phipps left the crease to try and force a turnover for an 11-6 lead with 8:32 left.

"We felt like we were kind of controlling the tempo at that point," Rubeor said. "We were behind the goal and when we had the ball behind the goal [the defense] wasn't necessarily pressing."

By the time Maryland closed to 11-8 on a goal by junior Jeff Reynolds, only 1:14 was left on the clock. The Terrapins did not score on their final two possessions.

The third-ranked Cavaliers (12-2) will face No. 2 Duke (14-2) in the title game here on Sunday. The Blue Devils defeated North Carolina, 17-6, in the first semifinal.

The Terrapins are 8-0 when they lead after the first quarter and 0-5 when they trail. Junior Garrett Billings helped Virginia to a fast start on Friday; he scored two goals in the first 2:18. The Cavaliers led 3-2 at the end of the first quarter.

Rubeor and Billings finished with four goals for the Cavaliers. Freshman Grant Catalino had two goals and one assist for the Terrapins, who won the regular season meeting, 13-7.

In that game, freshman Travis Reed was defended by a shortstick and had three goals and two assists. On Friday, he was defended by sophomore longstick Ryan Nizolek -- and Reed finished with two assists and no shots.

"One of the big differences . . . was us getting off to a good start," Virginia Coach Dom Starsia said. "Maryland is a team where the pace of the game makes all the difference in terms of the style that they want to play. Scoring some goals early allows us to play the game a little quicker."