The faint hopes of remaining a fixture in the race for the ACC regular-season title were just a foot away.

That became a lot easier after the senior scored Virginia’s first 12 points of the second half en route a rather easy 82-68 win over Maryland on Monday.

Given a rough schedule to open conference play, the Cavaliers (12-5, 1-2 ACC) will play tonight at Boston College tonight.

The roller-coaster ride continues for Ariana Moorer.

With the starting lineup barely breaking a sweat and resting most of the game on the bench, the reserves on the Virginia women’s basketball team helped to dominate Longwood 88-50 in a game with little drama.

Ariana Moorer had showcased the ability to score. Virginia’s rookie had also shown a Sean Singletary-like knack for rebounding, a rarity for an undersized point guard.

In the eyes of the casual fan, making the climb to college basketball has appeared easy for Ariana Moorer.

No. 15 Virginia used an impressive debut performance from its freshmen and a solid second half from Wooden Award candidate Monica Wright, rolling past High Point 78-48 in the season opener at John Paul Jones Arena on Friday night.

The challenge of replacing point guard Sharnee Zoll suddenly appears quite a bit more daunting.

When the first letter arrived in the mail, Ariana Moorer was floored with excitement.