Virginia Hosts Richmond In WNIT

UVa Athletics Media Relations Official Release

The Virginia women's basketball team continues play in the 2012 Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) Monday (March 19) at John Paul Jones Arena. The Cavaliers host Richmond in a second-round game scheduled to start at 7 p.m., and a free live webcast (Cavaliers Live), along with live statistics, will be available at VirginiaSports.com. The game will air locally on WINA 1070 AM in the Charlottesville area. Ticket prices are $9 for adults and $7 for youth, students and seniors. All tickets will be sold as general admission. Doors to John Paul Jones Arena will open at 5:30 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased online at VirginiaSports.com, by calling the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office at (800) 542-UVA1 or in person at the John Paul Jones Arena box office beginning 90 minutes prior to tip-off.

Game day parking will be available, free of charge, at John Paul Jones Arena and University Hall parking lots.

Virginia (23-10) defeated Howard in overtime, 59-56, in the first round of the 64-team postseason tournament.

Richmond and Virginia met earlier this season, Dec. 4, 2011, at the Robins Center in Richmond. The Cavaliers came away with a 69-56 victory in that match-up.

Virginia has posted a 15-3 record at JPJA this season and has won five of its last six games overall.

This Week In Recruiting

As expected, Virginia earned commitment No. 1 of the 2013 class last Wednesday, when Good Counsel (Olney, MD) quarterback Brendan Marshall pledged to the Hoos. Along with teammate Reggie McGee (a junior outside linebacker), the 6'5", 210-pound junior made an unofficial visit to UVa that day. Marshall didn't commit to head coach Mike London while in Charlottesville, but he didn't wait long.

"I actually left without committing, but I called [London] up on the way back and told him I wanted to come. I just wanted some time to talk to my mom and dad before I committed," Marshall told TheSabre.com.

For the rest of Marshall's comments as well as analysis on the decision, be sure to check out last Wednesday's EDGE article.

In a "Strategy Session" later this week, we'll catch you up on Virginia football's class of 2013 recruiting, including a list of our top early targets for the Hoos and a look at which players could decide next.

First, though, we'll focus more on the basketball recruiting front with an EDGE article on Bryant Stith's sons, B.J. and Brandan. B.J., a combo guard, has committed to Virginia's class of 2014, while Brandan, a junior, just received an offer from VCU and could be seeing his recruiting on an uptick.

UVa has offered the 6'6", 200-pound Brandan Stith, but right now it's contingent upon him attending prep school for one year following his senior year at Brunswick (Lawrenceville, VA). Brandan answers whether or not he is considering the class of 2014 option, discusses the VCU offer, and more in this latest update.

B.J. reflects on why he committed to Virginia last fall, what he will concentrate on this offseason, and more. The Stith brothers are fresh off of helping the Bulldogs to a second consecutive Virginia Group AA Division 3 State Championship.

Basketball fans should check out last week's EDGE updates on UVa 2012 class recruits Evan Nolte and Mike Tobey. Nolte, a 6'8" forward, and Tobey, a 6'11" center, had terrific seasons for their respective teams. Those two, along with UVa-bound guard/forward Justin Anderson, will take part in the 2012 Capital Classic.

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 since the last SabreMail ...

Checking In On Evan Nolte
Milton (Alpharetta, GA) head coach David Boyd says that senior forward Evan Nolte is the only player in the history of Georgia High School boys basketball to start in four consecutive largest classification state championship games. Nolte, who is all set to take his talents to Charlottesville, vividly recalls stepping onto the court in the Class 5A state title game four years ago as a freshman.

Checking In With Mike Tobey
Discussing Virginia's 2012 recruiting class to Hoos Talking two months ago, Cavaliers head coach Tony Bennett said the following about Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.) senior center Mike Tobey: "He has a real big upside. He's skilled. Deceptively athletic. Has real nice touch. He can step out and shoot the face-up, but he has got some back-to-the-basket moves and good instincts. I think Virginia fans are going to be real excited to watch his career unfold because I think he has a big upside." UVa fans should see a lot of the 6'11", 225-pound Tobey next season.

QB Brendan Marshall Is A Hoo
Brendan "Whitey" Marshall has been thinking seriously about committing to the University of Virginia since attending the 'Hoos February 25 Junior Day event. In fact, before heading home from the junior day, he expressed to assistant coaches Bill Lazor and Anthony Poindexter that he was leaning heavily towards becoming a Cavalier. Today, the 6'5", 210-pound junior signal caller made it official and accepted Virginia's scholarship offer.

More recent recruiting updates on The Sabre ...

• Hamilton Talks Recent Visits
• Olanrewaju Has UVa Offer, Plans Visit
• Hermitage Junior FS/WR One To Watch (blog)

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Virginia's Football Schedule

The Virginia football schedule has been released. Make sure to check out The Sabre's schedule page at this link for the 2012 season's opponents. The Sabre updates that page with game time, television information, and gameday pages as information is released on specific contests.

Kohles Sets Scoring Records in Victory

Virginia Athletics Media Relations Official Release

Virginia senior men's golfer Ben Kohles finished first at the Schenkel Invitational in Statesboro, Ga., to help the 26th-ranked Cavaliers to a second-place showing in the 14-team event. The victory was Kohles' second this spring and the seventh of his career. Kohles shot 5-under 67 Sunday for a 54-hole total of 18-under 198. His previous best tournament score was 206, which he recorded twice during his sophomore season. Auburn's Blayne Barber was the runner-up at 201.

"I hit it so good this week, it was unreal," Kohles said. "I hit 51 of 54 greens in regulation and was able to go up-and-down on two of the three I missed. My only bogey was on a hole I wasn't able to go up-and-down. Everything was working. It was a blast out there. I was actually trying to get to 20 under when I had six holes left to play. I just didn't make some birdie putts down the stretch."

Virginia shot 7-under 281 during Sunday's play for a total of 25-under 839. Alabama claimed the team title at 47-under 817. Second-ranked Auburn tied No. 24 Florida for third place at 847.

Kohles recorded a single bogey during his three days of play at the Forest Heights Country Club course. He had rounds of 65 and 66 during the opening two days. Both his overall score and his score in relation to par set Cavalier scoring records. He bettered current PGA Tour professional Steve Marino's 200 (10-under) he posted in 2001 at the Legends Club in Franklin, Tenn. Marino was one of four former UVa players who shared the record for best score in relation to par at 11-under. Amory Davis, Jeremy Luce and Jimmy Flippen (twice) also finished tournaments at 11-under.

"I did surprise myself a little bit," said Kohles who did not play golf during the winter break to rest a sore back. "After taking all of that time off in the winter, I think I only played four or five rounds this year before our first tournament. Still, I was shooting around 71 or 72 in those practice rounds. Those first two tournaments, they were on much tougher courses and we were playing in much tougher conditions. To win one and finish second in another, I knew I was playing pretty well."

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Around the World of Wahoo Sports ...

• Cavaliers Finish 17th at Women's NCAA Championships: The Virginia women's swimming team picked up four All-America honors Saturday en route to a 17th-place finish at the 2012 NCAA Championships. The Cavaliers finished with 60 points at the three-day event and posted their fifth consecutive top-20 finish at the national meet. Virginia also had nine of its 11 swimmers accumulate at least one All-America or honorable mention All-America accolade.
• No. 1 UVa Grabs Road Win Over Ohio State in the Horseshoe, 11-9: Overcoming a five-goal deficit, Chris Bocklet scored four goals and Ryan Tucker tallied his second career hat trick to elevate No. 1 Virginia (8-0) to an 11-9 triumph over the Ohio State Buckeyes (3-4) on Saturday afternoon, inside historic Ohio Stadium. UVa finished the final three quarters on a 10-3 run to take the victory.
• No. 10 Virginia Edged At No. 16 Princeton, 9-7: The 10th-ranked Virginia women's lacrosse team was edged on the road by No. 16 Princeton, 9-7, on Saturday. Senior attacker Josie Owen led the Cavaliers with two goals and two assists.
• Men's Tennis Wins Three Matches: The fifth-ranked Virginia men's tennis team concluded its homestand by sweeping a doubleheader with a pair of shutouts on Saturday. The Cavaliers (13-1, 3-0 ACC) downed Boston College 7-0 in the first match at the Snyder Tennis Center and Eastern Kentucky 7-0 in the nightcap at the Boyd Tinsley Courts at the Boar's Head Sports Club. On Friday, UVa won all six singles matches after falling behind 1-0 to post a 6-1 win over No. 31 Oklahoma.
• Virginia Women's Tennis Edges Maryland 4-3: The seventh-ranked Virginia women's tennis team returned to action for the first time in 15 days, downing No. 69 Maryland 4-3 on Saturday at the Snyder Tennis Center. The Cavaliers (11-2, 3-0 ACC) won their fifth consecutive match, while the Terrapins fell to 6-7 overall, 0-3 in the conference.
• No. 1 Virginia Completes Competition at Oak Ridge Invitational: The No. 1 Virginia rowing team completed action at the Oak Ridge Invitational Sunday. The Cavaliers finished with 18 victories through the three-session regatta.
• UVa baseball team drops two at FSU: No. 6 Florida State scored three runs in the eighth inning to erase a 3-1 deficit and earn a 4-3 win over the Virginia baseball team Sunday afternoon. The Virginia baseball team dropped the first game of a three-game series to No. 6 Florida State, 12-3, Saturday night.
• Virginia Concludes Action at NCAA Championships: The Virginia wrestling team completed its stay in the 2012 NCAA Championships Friday as all six Cavaliers were eliminated from the competition. UVa finished with 17.5 points, which put the Cavaliers in a 28th-place tie at the end of Session IV.

To read the full stories or gather more information on Virginia athletics, check out Virginiasports.com.

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Issue No. 460 - Aug. 30, 2010

This Week In Recruiting
By Chris Horne

Croce, Good Counsel Shine

Good Counsel (Olney, MD) scored a big win over St. Xavier (Cincinnati, OH) in a match-up of nationally ranked high school football programs. The Falcons, down 6-0 for the first three quarters, scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth including two interception returns for scores.

6-4, 265-pound b>Vincent Croce, one of 20 high school seniors to commit to the University of Virginia, was impressive throughout for the Falcons. Generally disruptive from the middle linebacker position, Croce also performed well on offense, making several nice catches from the tight end spot. Overall, the talented prospect showed tenacity, toughness and good speed and athletic ability.

Croce is being recruited by Virginia initially as a defensive end, though he acknowledges defensive tackle could be his ultimate position. From what I saw Sunday, Croce fits nicely as a versatile defender that could line up at end or tackle.

TheSabre.com hopes to catch up with Croce for more on Sunday's big win, so stay tuned to the EDGE.

Harris back for the Skyhawks

L.C. Bird (Chesterfield, VA) quarterback/cornerback Anthony Harris, another Virginia 2011 commitment, suffered a leg injury in the last regular season game of last season. Feeling 100 percent, Harris was back on the field last Thursday, leading the Skyhawks in preseason scrimmages against Westfield and Dinwiddie.

"I've been working hard in the offseason," the 6-3, 190-pound Harris said. "I've been working, pulling the sled, doing a lot of agility drills. Doing all that, I felt like I was back to normal. I felt good running around out there [in the scrimmage]. There was one busted play where I had to keep it myself and make a run. After getting tackled, I was ready to go."

Read SabreMail No. 460 here.

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:

• Spring Football: The Cavaliers are making final preparations for spring practice and The Sabre will be rolling out football coverage beginning this week.
• Basketball in action: The Hoos have started ACC play. The Sabre keeps you in the loop on the hoops team!
• Pro Hoos: TheSabre.com debuted a new series. Beyond The Lawn" is a 12-month series found exclusively on TheSabre.com that follows three Virginia Cavaliers through a year as a professional athlete. Baseball's Tyler Wilson (Baltimore Orioles), track and field's Stephanie Marie Garcia (U.S. Olympic hopeful), and football's Clint Sintim (New York Giants) share their experiences throughout the year.

In Case You Missed It ...

Sabre articles since the last SabreMail

Diamond Scouting Report: FSU
The Virginia baseball team took care of business in winning two mid-week games against Marist on Tuesday and Wednesday. Now the Hoos go on the road for their first away ACC series against perennial powerhouse Florida State. This weekend's series features the first-ever ESPN televised ACC Monday night baseball game at 8 p.m., so the first two games will be played on Saturday night at 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. rather than the normal Friday-Sunday weekend setup.

Gators End UVa's Stay In Big Dance
All season long, scoring droughts and opponents that could spread the floor enough to stretch the Pack-Line defense gave Virginia fits. So when both of those elements appeared once again in the NCAA Tournament matchup with Florida on Friday, the Cavaliers couldn't overcome the challenges and fell in lopsided fashion. The Gators rolled to a 71-45 victory in the Midwest Regional as the Hoos' return to the Big Dance ended quickly.

Greg's Guide To Spring
As the Hoos enter into 2012 spring practice, TheSabre.com reviews the 2011 season's grades and takes a look ahead at where UVa is expected to continue progressing, areas where major changes and upgrades are needed and areas of weakness. This analysis gives Cavalier fans an up-close look at the trends to track during spring practice as the Mike London and company try to take the program to back to back bowls for the first time since the MPC Computers Bowl and the Music City Bowl followed the 2004 and 2005 seasons.

The Sabre Interview: Jason Williford
Jason Williford has been coaching collegiate basketball for 12 years. Nearing the conclusion of his third year as a Virginia men's basketball assistant coach, Williford has come full circle - from UVa player to UVa assistant coach - and is exactly where he wants to be, back within the Virginia basketball program. The passion and loyalty for the Cavaliers remains evident any time you talk with Coach Williford, including during The Sabre Interview.

A Dance To Advance?
Okay, so if Virginia went on a magical tourney run it wouldn't exactly make the Cavs a "Cinderella" in the traditional sense, but in so many ways, the shoe would fit. The overused fairy-tale cliche conjures up thoughts of so-called "mid-major" programs overcoming the adversity of (often) smaller campuses, smaller budgets, smaller fanbases, and smaller players. Well, what about fielding a smaller team? Numerically speaking, that's exactly what the Hoos are faced with this Friday.

Diamond Scouting Report: Marist
Late-game comebacks were on display at Davenport Field in every exciting game against Virginia Tech this past weekend in the first ACC baseball series for both teams. The Cavaliers won the "comebacks" contest 2-1 and the won the series as a result. Now Virginia (9-5-1) welcomes Marist College from Poughkeepsie, NY, to town for two mid-week games on Tuesday and Wednesday, both games starting at 5 p.m.

Hoos Ready For Spring Practice
The Virginia football team begins spring practice in one week with a morning session on Monday, March 19. The mission for the 15 spring practices? The goal is to build on the 8-5 record and appearance in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. That won't be easy with departing starters at center, wide receiver, fullback, defensive end, defensive tackle, linebacker, safety, cornerback, punter and kicker.

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