No. 3 Virginia Cruises Past No. 18 Ohio State 14-8 Behind 17 Saves From Nunes

Matthew Nunes recorded 17 saves and posted a .708 save percentage to lead the Cavaliers past the Buckeyes

On a cool February afternoon at Klockner Stadium, the Cavaliers squared off against their third-ranked opponent of the season through three games. Up to the challenge, No. 3 Virginia took care of business with a 14-8 win over No. 20 Ohio State, improving to 3-0 on the season. 

Virginia outscored Ohio State 10-3 at halftime, powered by eight different scorers showing the depth on the offensive side of the ball. After that, Ohio State failed to come back into the game, only cutting the deficit to as few as five in the second half. 

“That first half is exactly what UVA men’s lacrosse is all about. We were all over the ground balls, the transition game, and were physical,” said Virginia head coach Lars Tiffany. 

In transition, Connor Shellenberger broke the scoring for the Hoos, picking up a loose ground ball before stinging the top left corner. Minutes later, Will Inderlied, on his birthday, scored his first of the season to make it 2-0 Cavaliers. In response, Ohio State fired back with a goal from Alex Marinier in transition after a Jack Boyden turnover. On the ensuing possession, Boyden dodged, scoring with a twister shot.

The Cavaliers then began to pile on the goals, beginning with Shellenberger finding Patrick McIntosh on the doorstep before Payton Cormier and McCabe Millon scored goals in transition to give Virginia a 6-1 lead. The Buckeyes netted two goals at the end of the first quarter to narrow the gap to three despite struggling early on. 

Defensively, Ben Wayer registered two caused turnovers and three ground balls in the first quarter alone. 

“He’s a man possessed, he’s like a mountain man coming down from the mountains after being gone for a year,” said Tiffany on the performance of Ben Wayer. 

To start the second quarter, both teams struggled to score until Cormier dodged past two defenders before assisting Millon on the doorstep, igniting a four-goal scoring run. On the ensuing faceoff, Joey Terenzi scored his fourth of the season, flashing his two-way midfield ability before Ryan Colsey joined the scoring party. 

Minutes later, Millon assisted Cormier on a man-up to give Virginia a 10-3 lead at halftime. The Cavaliers' dominance was helped by a strong performance from Anthony Ghobriel at the faceoff stripe, going 6/8 for the game. 

In the cage, Matthew Nunes picked up eight saves in the first half, good for a 72.7 save percentage.

To start the second half, Ohio State opened the scoring with a transition goal before Shellenberger fed Colsey on the doorstep. Virginia then committed two penalties, giving the Buckeyes a two-man advantage, which they capitalized on with a goal from Kurt Bruun.

The man-up goal gave life to the Buckeyes offense as they added another goal to cut the lead to 11-6 heading into the fourth quarter. Virginia scored only one goal all quarter as Ohio State goalie Caleb Fyock picked up seven third-quarter saves.

To open the fourth, Griffin Schutz tallied a diving crease goal to make it 12-6. Virginia then committed two sloppy turnovers, with the second one setting up a Buckeyes goal, shortening the lead to five. Despite the goal, the Cavaliers' defense anchored by Matthew Nunes, kept the Buckeyes at bay. 

In response, Shellenberger fired back with an unassisted goal with a dodge from behind x to restore confidence in the Virginia offense before Millon followed up with a goal, giving Virginia a 14-7 lead with less than four minutes remaining. 

After that, Virginia took its foot off the gas, giving backup goalie Kyle Morris reps in the net and offensive guys such as Thomas Menke and Mikie Harmeyer getting opportunities on attack. Taking advantage, Ohio State tallied one more goal, but Virginia cruised to the 14-8 victory.

McCabe Millon led the way offensively for the Hoos, tallying three goals and three assists alongside Connor Shellenberger, who had two goals and three assists.

Defensively, Matthew Nunes registered 17 saves, two away from tying his career-high, and a .708 save percentage. Ben Wayer finished with four ground balls and two caused turnovers, while Cole Kastner finished with one ground ball and three caused turnovers. Joey Terenzi led the team in ground balls with five. 

At the faceoff stripe, Virginia finished 14/26 with a combined effort from Anthony Ghobriel, Matthew DeSousa, and Thomas Colucci. Ghobriel did not play in the second half due to an injury.

Virginia (3-0) returns to action next Saturday against No. 9 Johns Hopkins at Klockner Stadium. 

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