Wrestling Wins First ACC Championship Since 1977

Official Release, UVa Athletics Media Relations

The Virginia wrestling team, behind ACC champions Chris Henrich and Mike Salopek, won the program's first ACC Championship since 1977 on Saturday night in Raleigh, N.C. Virginia racked up 85 points, edging out Maryland (80.5) and Virginia Tech (78.5).

Virginia captured its fourth title overall and the program's first since the George Edwards era. Under Edwards, UVa won ACC championships in 1974, 1975 and 1977. The Cavaliers narrowly missed winning the championship the past two years, finishing two points behind Maryland in each instance.

"It was just about a perfect day," Virginia head coach Steve Garland said. "I'm just trying not to cry right now. It was 1977 the last time we won it and it has been a long time coming. There is so much work that goes into it. To see all of our guys hugging and crying, it means the world to me.

"You know you can do it and you put the work in, but at the end of the day, this tournament is crazy. The last two years we just missed the title by two points. We finally pulled it off. Sure, you come here and think you are going to win it, but until you do it, you just cannot imagine the emotion of pulling it off. Seeing the wrestlers hugging each other after Mike [Salopek] had won, that was a special moment."

The championship was a total team effort. Virginia, ranked 22nd nationally, came in as underdogs to No. 10 Maryland and No. 14 Virginia Tech, but all 10 Cavalier wrestlers reached the semifinal round and placed among the top four in their respective weight classes. UVa was the only team to place in the top four in all 10 weight classes.

In addition to the team championship, a school-record eight Cavaliers qualified for the 2010 NCAA Championships. That breaks the previous record of seven, set in 1997, 1998 and 2009. Ross Gitomer (125), Derek Valenti (141), Shawn Harris (149), Dan Gonsor (157), Henrich (174), Salopek (184), Brent Jones (197) and Jack Danilkowicz (285) all punched their tickets to the NCAA Championships after earning automatic bids. In all UVa, earned one-third of the ACC's 24 automatic qualifier slots.

Read the full news release here.

This Week In Recruiting
By Chris Horne

Football recruiting

Virginia football couldn't have asked for a better turnout at Saturday's junior day event. Hermitage (Richmond, VA) linebacker Curtis Grant, Kempsville (Virginia Beach, VA) linebacker/running back Travis Hughes, Bayside (Virginia Beach, VA) cornerback Demetrious Nicholson and Menchville (Newport News, VA) running back/athlete Clifton Richardson, four prospects in my early in-state top 10 for 2011, were on hand for the event. Other offered targets such as Green Run (Virginia Beach, VA) defensive tackle David Dean, Independence (Charlotte, N.C.) running back Nyjee Fleming, Independence (Charlotte, N.C.) wide receiver and UVa commit Adrian Gamble, Manchester (Midlothian, VA) offensive lineman Jake Goins and Phoebus (Hampton, VA) linebacker Caleb Taylor were confirmed to be on hand as well.

From my discussions with the prospects on hand, the weekend went outstanding as far as Virginia is concerned. Obviously, the good news started with the commitment of Menchville star Clifton Richardson. The 6-1, 195-pound prospect pledged to coach London and company on Saturday. He has since retracted a bit, now considered a "soft" commitment, but the Cavaliers are in great shape with one of the state's most versatile prospects.

Green Run (Virginia Beach, VA) defensive tackle David Dean committed as well, informing the staff of his decision Sunday afternoon. The 6-2, 285-pound all-Tidewater selection chose the Cavaliers over offers from Boston College, Duke, Louisville, Marshall and West Virginia.

For EDGE subscribers, reports have been posted on the EDGE message board on Fleming, Gamble, Goins, Grant, Hughes and Taylor. We'll have full articles on these prospects throughout the week, beginning with EDGE updates on Grant and Hughes, two nationally recruited linebacker prospects. Also, we'll be sure to follow up with the other visitors and any breaking news will be posted on the EDGE board.

Basketball recruiting

Virginia basketball recruit Joe Harris didn't end his career with a state championship, but he scored 27 points in helping Lake Chelan (WA) to a fifth place finish in the Class 1A state playoffs. Chelan defeated Nooksack Valley 62-60 last week. Harris, a 6-6, 200-pound guard/forward, finishes a storied high school basketball career as the all-time Class 1A scoring leader with 2,398 points.

We'll check in with Joe and his father this week for reflection on the 2009/2010 season and a look ahead to the University of Virginia. Last Friday, we caught up with Charlotte Christian (N.C.) head coach Shonn Brown, who discussed UVa recruit Akil Mitchell's senior season. The 6-7 Mitchell averaged 13 points and 6.5 boards per game this season, earning all-state honors as a result.

On the target front, check out the latest EDGE update on 6-11, 210-pound center Marshall Plumlee. Plumlee reflects on his visit to Virginia for the Duke game and talks recruiting. Plumlee is one of Virginia's top targets in the 2011 class.

Chris Horne, our resident recruiting expert, provides updates throughout the week for Edge subscribers about UVa's commitments and recruiting targets in football and men's basketball. To sign up for an Edge subscription, please check out the Sabre Edge Sign Up and Information Page. If you're already on board as an Edge subscriber, click the links below to catch up on recruiting.

Sabre Edge recruiting updates from the past week ...

Virginia Beach Standout Commits To UVa
Defensive tackle is a need in Virginia's 2011 class, and the Cavaliers scored a commitment from one of the state's best junior prospects. Green Run (Virginia Beach, VA) standout David Dean, a 6-2, 285-pound junior, verbally committed to Mike London's program Sunday afternoon.

Coach Updates Richardson's Status
There is no question that Menchville (Newport News, VA) star junior Clifton Richardson had a great time visiting the University of Virginia yesterday. What has been in question is just how solid the commitment he gave Cavaliers head coach Mike London is at this point. TheSabre.com caught up with Menchville head coach John Byron for the latest.

Coach Reflects On Mitchell's Senior Season
Akil Mitchell scored 15 points and pulled down nine rebounds in the NCISAA 3A state championship game last Saturday, edging out his season averages in points and rebounds. The 6-7, 215-pound forward turned in a solid senior season at Charlotte Christian (N.C.), which went 29-4 in 2009/2010. Coach Shonn Brown talks Mitchell's development throughout the year and looks ahead to Mitchell's career at the University of Virginia.

More recent recruiting updates on The Sabre ...

• 4-Star C Plumlee Visits UVa
• UVa Adds Talented Guard To 2010 Class
• Mewbourne Has ACC, Big East Interest
• UVa To Host Another Junior Day
• Spring, Summer Key For Dinwiddie QB
• Dinwiddie Star DE Talks VT, UVa Visits
• Top Target Profile: OL Donovan Smith

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Blog Banter: Big Man Quotes

Virginia post players Assane Sene and Jerome Meyinsse joined the media for interviews after Sunday's disappointing loss to Duke. Sene (interesting side note: he texts his brother who played basketball … in French!) posted 10 rebounds, 2 points, 2 blocks, and 1 assist in the game while Meyinsse recorded 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 1 block. Here are a few quotes from questions I asked the duo …

Assane Sene

I don't know how much individual film you watch, but do you think you're getting better with your individual skills out there?

"When you have a coach like Coach Bennett, you have to take that chance [to improve]. He's a great coach, he's a great guy, he's a great mentor for the players. He knows what each player can do and what we can't. Every practice, I've been talking to the coaches. Like Coach Sanchez, he really wants me to get better every time we're in practice. He'll call me over to get more shots and all of this stuff to try to make me stronger in the post. If I see all of this stuff that they're showing up during games, I just have to thank all of them, all of the coaches, for trying to help me get better and just keep working hard. Things will come one day."

Read the full post on The Good Ol Blog!

Landesberg Suspended

Virginia coach Tony Bennett announced Saturday that sophomore Sylven Landesberg will not play in games for the remainder of the 2009-10 season for failure to live up to his academic obligations. Read the official news release here.

Landesberg, who leads Virginia in scoring, assists and minutes played this season, received the suspension because he did not live up to Bennett's program's expectations, the coach said after Saturday's loss to Maryland. According to a Jerry Ratlcliffe article in The Daily Progress, "One of those expectations is for players to attend class and that's where Landesberg, who leads UVa in scoring, assists, and minutes played, got into trouble." Read that article here.

The Hoos move on without the standout scorer as the ACC Tournament begins this week. The ninth-seeded Cavaliers play eighth-seeded Boston College in the tournament's first game at noon on Thursday. The game will be televised by Raycom and broadcast by the Virginia Sports Radio Network.

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Around the World of Wahoo Sports ...

• No. 1 Cavaliers Pound Wright State for DH Sweep: The No. 1 Virginia baseball team finished off a hot day at the plate with a 13-3 victory over Wright State, Sunday afternoon, in the second game of a doubleheader at Davenport Field. In the first game, UVa pounded out 18 hits in an 11-5 win over Dartmouth. The Hoos defeated Dartmouth on Saturday as well, but dropped a tough game to Wright State on Friday.
• No. 1 Men's Tennis Downs No. 4 Texas 9-4: The top-ranked Virginia men's tennis team won its 62nd consecutive home match with a 9-4 win over No. 4 Texas Sunday afternoon at the Snyder Tennis Center. The match featured an alternative scoring method agreed upon by both coaches that involved four doubles and nine singles matches, all worth one point each.
• Women's Tennis Falls at VCU 5-2: he No. 27 Virginia women's tennis team had its five-match winning streak snapped Saturday with a 5-2 loss at No. 29 VCU. The Cavaliers fell to 8-3 on the season.
• Big First Half Lifts No. 9 Virginia Over No. 13 Penn State: The No. 9 Virginia women's lacrosse team notched the first eight goals of the contest against No. 13 Penn State in Holuba Hall on Sunday to lift the Cavaliers to a 13-8 victory. The win marks the fifth-straight win for the Cavaliers over the Nittany Lions and the 13th in the last 14 meetings. It also improves Virginia's record to 3-2 on the season. The Hoos dropped their ACC opener to Maryland on Friday, 11-5.
• UVa Takes Cavalier Classic Crown: The Virginia softball team improved to 8-7 this season after shutting out Columbia 8-0 and Delaware State 9-0 Saturday at The Park. The Cavaliers finished the round-robin tournament with a 4-0 record on the weekend.
• Cavaliers Wrap Up Final Competition Before NCAA Indoor Championships: Junior Adams Abdulrazaaq led the Virginia track and field team in its final weekend of competition prior to the 2010 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, bettering his already school record time in the 60m hurdles. Abdulrazaaq finished runner-up at the Virginia Tech Last Chance meet with a time of 7.85 to improve his NCAA provisional qualifying mark - and school record time - in the 60m hurdles.
• Cavaliers Fall To NC State in ACC Quarters, 66-59: N.C. State hold off Monica Wright and Virginia 66-59 in Friday's ACC Tournament Quarterfinals. Wright scored 22 of her 32 points in the final 12 minutes for third-seeded Virginia (21-9), but she got little help. Her teammates combined to shoot 9 for 36 (25 percent), leaving the league player of the year to carry the burden alone.

For more Hoo news or to read full releases, check out Virginiasports.com.

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Issue No. 102 - Aug. 29, 2003

Baseball hires head assistant
Official UVa Media Relations Report

University of Virginia head baseball coach Brian O'Connor has announced another key addition to his coaching staff. O'Connor named Kevin McMullan as his top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. McMullan, a 1990 graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP), will also serve as UVa's hitting coach and will work extensively with the Cavaliers' infielders and catchers. McMullan is the second assistant coach named to O'Connor staff and joins current assistant coach Karl Kuhn, who was recently named Virginia's pitching coach on July 30th. The addition of McMullan rounds out O'Connor's coaching staff.

Check Out SabreMail #102.

Coming Soon

The Sabre has you covered when it comes to Hoo news. Here are a few of the articles to expect on the site soon:

• ACC Breakdowns: The Sabre's popular ACC scouting reports are now joined by follow-up articles from Cvillehoops13. Make sure to check it all out.
• Defense: After taking in the Syracuse-UVa men's lacrosse game, The Sabre takes a look at the Hoos' defense.
• Spring Football: Virginia starts practice on Monday, March 15 and The Sabre will have tons of coverage on the Cavaliers.

In Case You Missed It ...

Sabre articles since the last SabreMail

Virginia Overcomes Syracuse
On an unseasonably warm and sunny March afternoon, the Virginia men's lacrosse team dropped rival and No. 1 Syracuse in an 11-10, physical shootout. Junior midfielder Rhamel Bratton, stepping up in place of his injured brother Shamel, led the Cavaliers with four goals. Virginia overcame a 5-2 deficit in the early moments of the contest and then held off a fourth quarter rally to notch the victory.

The Parable Of Jerome Meyinsse
Virginia post player Jerome Meyinsse continued his remarkable rise Saturday afternoon with a tremendous Senior Day performance in a disappointing 74-68 loss to Maryland. Meyinsse poured in 17 points as he added another chapter to what's become a fond farewell story. No, he was not the jewel of his recruiting class. Yes, he spent the first three years of his Cavalier career as an afterthought. Within Meyinsse's story, however, resides a lesson for future Cavaliers and fans alike.

Terps Hold Off Cavaliers
When Virginia men's basketball followers looked forward to the team's contest against Maryland, few could have expected much drama. The Terrapins, tied for first place in the conference, could ill afford a bad loss to end the season; the Cavaliers entered as the losers of eight straight games, the last six by double figures. Even on Senior Day in Charlottesville, another ho-hum double-digit Virginia loss appeared all too predictable. That could not have been further from the truth.

Breaking Down The Duke/BC Losses
While the final result of the Duke and Boston College games were similar to others in the past month, both games showcased some positives that hadn't been seen much as well as many of the same problems. In both games we saw adjustments by Tony Bennett and players scrambling to turn the season around. I'll take a look at some of the positives and negatives of each contest and briefly cover what these two games should show us going forward.

London Looking Forward To Spring Practice
Rest assured, Virginia football fans aren't the only ones excited for the start of spring practice this month. You can count new coach Mike London among the group in fact because he's as excited as anyone to get things rolling on March 15. London's reasons for the enthusiasm are simple: who and what.

Gosselin Gives Hoos A Versatile Option
Maybe it's because he's quiet. Or perhaps it's because he had a freshman year marred by injury, contrasting with the dynamite freshman seasons of some of his teammates. Whatever the reason is, Phil Gosselin seems to fly under the radar - even though he is arguably as important of a player for the Virginia baseball team as anyone in its line-up. In the spotlight or not, however, Gosselin is the prototype for what the Cavaliers' program wants in a player.

UVa's Skid Reaches 8 With Loss At BC
Virginia did not find a cure for its struggles on Wednesday night as Boston College dealt a 68-55 road loss to UVa. The Cavaliers, who have dropped eight straight games, continued to misfire offensively in defeat. The Hoos have scored 55 points or less five times during the recent losing streak and they have surpassed 62 points just once since January.

ACC Scouting Report: Boston College
Hitting the road to try to end a seven-game losing streak is not an enviable situation - doing it with an injured leading scorer and against one of the toughest offensive systems to defend in college basketball makes it that much more difficult. With what might be Virginia's best chance to get another win in the 2010 season, the Boston College Eagles will provide a stiff challenge while also giving us a preview of what we might see in the following game against the Maryland Terrapins.

Photo Gallery: Baseball Series At ECU
The Virginia baseball team won a pair of road games at East Carolina and climbed to No. 1 in the nation with the 2-1 series victory. Dan Grovatt and the Hoos have been rolling at home with four straight wins since taking over the top spot. The Cavaliers hope to keep the streak going against visiting JMU on Tuesday at 3 p.m. Get ready for the diamond action with this photo gallery that features 70 images of the Cavaliers' series at ECU.

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