Unity and Competition Set to Drive Virginia Lacrosse in 2025

Aidan Baller | Feb 10, 2025

Virginia Athletics

After a strong opening 19-9 win over Colgate on Saturday, Coach Lars Tiffany has quickly found the positives in a new era that departs from the superstars of Connor Shellenberger, Payton Cormier, and Cole Kastner. While lacking the talent of previous years, this year's team will look to rely on its cohesiveness and chemistry both on and off the field to be the driving force behind its success in 2025.

For our takeaways from the opening victory against Colgate: Five Takeaways From Virginia Lacrosse's Season Opening Win Against Colgate

"What our captains [Ben Wayer, Noah Chizmar, and Jack Walshe] have done has created a unified force, probably the most unified team I've had in my nine years here. Fewer superstars, you know, and I miss those superstars for sure, but you know, the cohesion and this indomitable spirit we're competing with is I'm very grateful," said Tiffany after the team's opening win over Colgate.

Leading by example, all three captains had prolific days, starting with Ben Wayer, who scored the opening goal for the Hoos, scooping up a groundball off of a deflected shot before bouncing his shot in, using the muddy surface to confuse the Colgate goaltender. Wayer also added a full-field assist to Truitt Sunderland and a goal from the restraining line, exposing Colgate's ten-man ride. He would finish with two goals, an assist, two caused turnovers, and nine groundballs, a team-high.

Moving to Walshe, he scored three goals, the first three of his Virginia account, after struggling with injuries for much of his Cavalier career. Lastly, Noah Chizmar added two groundballs while being a force on the defensive end, a characteristic that doesn't always materialize on the stat sheet.

The trend among the three was the team's ecstatic reactions whenever they made plays—especially when Walshe scored his first goal, with the entire bench rushing a few feet onto the field in celebration. Similarly, for the opening goal by Ben Wayer, Thomas Mencke and John Schroter sprinted across the field to join the party.

the fellas are absolutely, positively, undoubtedly 𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊 🤩#GoHoos pic.twitter.com/Uj3hkbk5Nz

— Virginia Men's Lacrosse (@UVAMensLax) February 8, 2025

"We have 50 guys that really care about each other and love each other, and we've been talking about this day since the first day we stepped on grounds together," said Truitt Sunderland after the season opening win.

Sunderland, who finished with six goals and three assists, pointed his performance to the team's credit rather than his own: "No one cares who's getting the points or the glory, as long as the balls get in the back of the net. "

On Saturday, there was also a sense of the competition that brewed in the offseason, with the team picking up 56 groundballs and tons of players getting playing time. On the defensive side of the ball, the defense rotated who was playing close, with John Schroter, George Fulton, and Griffin Kology notching the starts while freshman Luke Hublitz and Tommy Snyder quickly rotated in.

"They're playing at such a high level. And so I said, I just, you've earned it," said Tiffany about Hublitz and Snyder. "I don't know if I've ever had this much parity... you could say, well, because you don't have the superstars, you know, but this middle is higher than than the last couple years, and the competition in practice is wonderful to witness."

"They're two absolute studs and bringing the ball up field. And love playing with them too," said John Schroter about Hublitz and Snyder.

At defensive mid, the Cavaliers also flashed their depth with Noah Chizmar and Joey Terenzi leading the charge, while Wills Burt, Mack Till, Will Erdmann, and Hudson Hausmann all played a considerable amount of time on Saturday.

The trend continued between the pipes, with goalies Kyle Morris and Matthew Nunes splitting halves as the battle for the starting goalie spot continued into the regular season, with Morris currently having the edge.

"It's a decibel point difference. And so it was somewhat planned," said Tiffany, later speculating that the rotating goalie's approach could be seen moving forward. 

On the offensive side of the ball, about eight midfielders rotated when the game was still close, emphasizing the depth driven by competition. Griffin Schutz, Will Inderlied, and Thomas Mencke led the charge, while Charles Balsamo, Caulley Deringer, Jack Walshe, Joey Terenzi, and Hudson Hausmann all rotated in on the second line.

"The first game is always fun, just getting to fly around And I think we're in a good spot where we look forward to keeping this thing rolling," said Sunderland.

The Cavaliers will look to ride this momentum into Saturday against Richmond at 11:30 AM at Klöckner Stadium.