CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Minutes after earning the first tournament title of his career yesterday, Maryland senior defenseman Chris Passavia already was thinking about winning another.
“It took four years, but it’s just as sweet,” Passavia said after the Terrapins edged Virginia 12-11 in the ACC title game. “Maybe it’s sweeter. For our sophomore class, they have a final four and an ACC championship. Maybe they can follow it up with something a little more special.”
Joe Walters, one of those sophomores, scored a career-high six goals to earn tournament MVP honors as No.3 Maryland ended No.14 Virginia’s NCAA hopes before 1,347 at Fetzer Field.
The top-seeded Terps (10-2) won their first ACC tournament title since 1998 and only their second in the event’s 16-year history.
The loss clinched a sub-.500 season for the Cavaliers (5-7), who have only a May8 game at Penn State remaining. Virginia is the first defending national champion to miss the postseason since Cornell in 1972 and only the second since the NCAA tournament began in 1971.
“This is a game we needed to win to stay in it,” senior goalie Tillman Johnson said during a press conference that seemed more like a funeral. “It hurts. We have one game left, and that’s it. It’s pretty disappointing.”
Virginia nearly rallied from a five-goal deficit to force overtime. The Cavaliers, who shut out Maryland in the last 20:24, pulled within 12-11 when Joe Yevoli slipped one past goalie Tim McGinnis (12 saves) with 40 seconds left.
The Cavaliers won the ensuing faceoff and set up a play for Yevoli to wrap around the net for a shot. With McGinnis blocking the cage, Yevoli sent a pass well beyond Foster Gilbert with seven seconds left to seal the Terps’ title.
The finish was just as frenetic as the start. Maryland held a 7-5 lead after a surprisingly up-and-down first quarter, but the tempo slowed and the Terps took an 8-6 edge into halftime. Walters then ripped off three goals in the third quarter as the Terps built a 12-7 lead.
Passavia, attackman J.R. Bordley, midfielder Paul Gillette, goalie Tim McGinnis and defenseman Lee Zink joined Walters on the all-tournament team along with Virginia’s Brett Hughes, Matt Ward and Yevoli.
The championship all but assured Maryland a top-four seed in next month’s NCAA tournament and kept it in the hunt for the opportunity to play a quarterfinal game in Charlottesville instead of Ithaca, N.Y. The Terps also ensured they wouldn’t have to meet Virginia for a third time.
“The coaches knew this was a big game because we really didn’t want to play in Charlottesville against Virginia in the quarters,” Maryland coach Dave Cottle said. He paused before adding, “But we would like to go Charlottesville.”
Even though the Cavaliers still have a game left, the loss brought a sense of finality.
“It’s been a long two months,” Virginia coach Dom Starsia said. “Everybody has worked hard. … It’s been a group that had to grow up together over the course of the season. It hasn’t always been the easiest ride, but we’ve been making progress. I’m sorry it ended so abruptly.”
Women: Virginia 17, Duke 7
Amy Appelt scored five goals and tournament MVP Ashleigh Haas added three goals and two assists as the second-seeded Cavaliers (15-3) demolished the top-seeded Blue Devils (11-5) in the ACC final at Henry Stadium. Virginia tied the tournament record for goals in a title game as it won its first ACC title since 1998.
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