Another Slow Start, Another Dominant Finish for Virginia in 18-9 Win at Towson

The Cavaliers outscored the Tigers 17-5 in the final three quarters to win their first road game of the season

Slow starts continue to be a disturbing trend for the Virginia men's lacrosse team. Through the first three games of the season, the Cavaliers have been outscored by a combined 9-3 margin in the first quarter. However, the Hoos have managed to make up for those lackluster first quarters with strong performances through the rest of the game. UVA trailed Towson 4-1 at the end of the first quarter, but the Cavaliers outscored the Tigers 17-5 for the rest of the game and rolled to an 18-9 victory on Saturday afternoon at Towson. 

In the first road game of the season against a quality Towson team, the the Cavaliers came out flat and were thoroughly outplayed in the first quarter. Four different Tigers scored in the first quarter as Towson jumped out to a 4-1 lead. Towson goalkeeper Shane Brennan made seven saves in the opening period. Connor Shellenberger was the only Cavalier to find the back of the net through the first 15 minutes. 

UVA woke up in the second quarter, scoring five straight goals and outscoring Towson 6-2 to take a 7-6 lead at halftime. Five different Cavaliers scored in the period, including two from senior midfielder Jack Simmons, who had a career-high four goals in the game. Simmons had just four goals in his career coming into the game. 

Xander Dickson, Petey LaSalla, Griffin Schutz, and Shellenberger also tallied goals in the second quarter. Towson's Kyle Berkley scored his second goal of the game and assisted on another to make it 7-6 Virginia at halftime. Berkley finished with two goals and two assists to lead the Tigers. 

Virginia took control of the game in the third quarter, outscoring Towson 7-1 in the period. Payton Cormier scored three goals in the third as part of an 8-0 UVA run that stretched into the fourth quarter. Cormier matched Simmons with four goals and also had two assists in the contest.

The highlight play of the game came as time expired at the end of the third quarter. Virginia collected a loose ball in its defensive zone with just a few seconds left and chucked it down the field to Shellenberger, who collected the ball for just a fraction of a second before firing a pass to Xander Dickson in front of the net. Dickson caught the ball and shot it in mid-air, beating Brennan and the clock to put UVA up 14-7. 

Virginia took its foot slightly off the gas in the fourth quarter, but still outscored Towson 4-2 in the final period and cruised to the 18-9 victory. 

Connor Shellenberger had two goals and three assists and Xander Dickson tallied two goals and two helpers. Petey LaSalla won 12 of 22 faceoffs and tied the UVA record for career faceoff wins with 604. The reigning ACC Defensive Player of the Week Matthew Nunes made six saves and allowed seven goals. 

With the win, Virginia remains unbeaten with a record of 3-0 on the season. The Cavaliers return home for their first ACC matchup of the season against No. 9 Syracuse next Saturday at noon at Klockner Stadium. 

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