Quotes from UVa players after the loss to Duke

Over the Al Groh era at Virginia, passing statistics generally have been losing statistics.

Virginia lost to Duke 28-17 at home.

Virginia lost to Duke 28-17 at home.

Western Albemarle bounced back from an early deficit against Orange County to cruise to a Jefferson District win on Friday, keeping its perfect record intact.

For a Charlottesville tennis fan, it probably doesn’t get much better than the $50,000 Virginia National Bank Men’s Tennis Championships that kick off today with qualifying rounds at the Boar’s Head Sports Club.

It was the Madison County underclassmen that carried a senior-laden squad to a 28-7 victory over visiting Strasburg Friday night.

UVa, thanks to a beautiful goal by Sinead Farrelly just before halftime and a huge save by goalie Chantel Jones late in the contest, upset the Seminoles 1-0 in front of a crowd of 809.

That matchup will be on clear display today as the Blue Devils (4-3, 2-1) and Cavaliers (3-4, 2-1) battle each other to stay in the ACC Coastal Division title race.

Defensive backs dream about games like Virginia’s matchup today against visiting Duke. Well, they dream about them as long as things go their way.

Virginia earned the No. 14 spot in the poll and was the third-highest ACC team.

Western Albemarle bounced back from an early deficit against Orange County to cruise to a Jefferson District win on Friday, keeping its perfect record intact.

Albemarle’s struggles continued on Friday night, as the Patriots fell to visiting Mountain View, 45-12.

Entering the game on a two-game skid, Fluvanna County was eager to get back to their winning ways. Thanks to a potent running attack and a gritty performance from quarterback Ryan Foster, the Flying Flucos did just that Friday night in front of the Charlottesville home crowd, defeating the Black Knights 33-22.

Tonight’s Jefferson District matchup pitting Orange County against Western Albemarle will mark the final home game for what Warriors coach Ed Pierce calls “a remarkable group” of seniors.

Regardless, Virginia (3-4, 2-1 ACC) and Duke (4-3, 2-1), the two teams from the conference to miss the postseason last year, are near mirror images on paper.

One thing is very clear when you talk to Virginia freshman Tristan Spurlock — he’s not some shy, timid kid who’s just hoping to make an impact on the program someday in the future.

Louisa County’s Chris Springer and Western Albemarle’s Emily Moffett won this years Jefferson District cross country meet at Panorama Farms.

Duke’s Thaddeus Lewis is on the minds of Virginia’s defense for this Saturday’s game at Scott Stadium. Lewis, who has thrown for nearly 9,000 yards in his career, isn’t one of the three ACC quarterbacks ranked among the elite in the nation right now. Those honors go to Virginia Tech’s Tyrod Taylor, Miami’s Jacory Harris, and Florida State’s Christian Ponder.

Virginia (3-4, 2-1 ACC) seemed to fail in that respect as the Yellow Jackets outscored the Cavs 21-3 in the final two quarters en route to a 34-9 victory that essentially left Virginia searching for a bowl berth to salvage another season.

With Virginia’s men’s basketball season opener little more than two weeks away, one would think the fan base would be less than enthusiastic, considering the program is coming off its worst season since they used peach baskets and this edition of Cavaliers were picked to finish 11th in the 12-team ACC.

Thaddeus Lewis will walk into Scott Stadium on Saturday with a heavy heart.

On Tuesday, UVa senior Calvin Baker underwent arthroscopic surgery to clean out a loose piece of cartilage in his right knee.

Wright landed the honor at the annual ACC media day, which was held at the Greensboro Coliseum in North Carolina.

Don’t expect that from Duke — the Blue Devils rank 5th in the nation in passing, using the run sparingly.

The next time you’re watching a football game on TV and hear one of those brilliant talking heads make the observation that, “those coaches made some great adjustments at halftime,” beware.

If God were to build the perfect mountain golf course, there would be temptation to borrow a few ideas from Donald Steel’s masterpiece, the Highland Course at Primland, one of Virginia’s hidden treasures.

At ACC Media Day on Sunday, John Clougherty, the ACC coordinator of men’s basketball officiating, announced a new rule in which help-defenders will be whistled for fouls if they attempt to take a charge within an 18-24 inch “imaginary” line, extending from the edge of the backboard to the front of the rim.

After rehashing the video from Saturday’s crippling loss to Georgia Tech, Virginia turned the page.

Last season, UVa was picked by the media to finish 12th in the 12-school ACC. The Cavaliers ended up 11th, and replaced former coach Dave Leitao with Bennett at season’s end.
On Sunday afternoon at ACC Media Day, Virginia was predicted to finish 11th.