April 28, 2018
By John Heisler
Welcome to the wild, wacky world of Atlantic Coast Conference men’s lacrosse.
The two teams with the most distinctive 2018 track records — second-seeded Duke with its number-one ranking in the USILA (United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association) poll of coaches and top seed Syracuse with its perfect 4-0 mark in ACC regular-season play — both fell Friday night in the ACC Championship semifinals in Charlottesville, Virginia.
The two teams most in need of adding quality wins to their respective resumes — 6-5 Notre Dame (eighth in NCAA RPI before Friday’s action) and 10-4 Virginia (10th in RPI) — did just that.
Duke (with a home game remaining next Sunday versus Boston University) assuredly will be in the NCAA Championship — thanks to its number-three RPI and overall 12-3 record.
Syracuse, finished for now at 7-6 overall, possesses an interesting number-nine RPI — but the Orange dropped five of eight non-league games in 2018, including home losses to Albany (15-3), Johns Hopkins (18-7) and Navy (13-12 last weekend). Three of those four regular-season ACC victories came by a single goal (one in overtime).
Meanwhile, Notre Dame Sunday looks for its second ACC Championship trophy in its five seasons in the league in a de facto road game against home-standing Virginia.
It’s a replay of Notre Dame’s 9-7 regular-season victory over the Wahoos back on March 17 in South Bend.
Here’s a collection of facts, opinions and questions in advance of the noon Sunday matchup on ESPNU:
–Notre Dame is playing in its third ACC title game in its five years as a league member — after winning the trophy in 2014 in its first season in the conference (one-goal victories over fifth-ranked Maryland and fourth-rated Syracuse) and falling last April to North Carolina. The Irish also claimed ACC regular-season titles in 2015 at 4-0 and in 2016 at 3-1, sharing that one with Carolina.
–Both the Irish and Cavaliers expended serious emotional capital Friday night in knocking off favored opponents. Which team will have more left in the tank over 60 minutes Sunday?
–It’s safe to say Ryder Garnsey likes Charlottesville. A year ago, his overtime goal in the regular-season meeting at Klockner Stadium between Notre Dame and Virginia accounted for an 11-10 Irish road victory — and his creative post-goal celebration trended strongly on social media. Then Friday night he excelled with a season high-tying five goals in the win over top-rated Duke in another heavy-duty passionate setting.
–It’s worth noting that the Irish win against Duke came over a Blue Devil team that led the league in both offense (13.79 goals per game) and defense (7.79) in 2018.
–Who has more emotion involved Sunday? Irish head coach Kevin Corrigan, a Virginia graduate whose father Gene is a former Virginia (and Notre Dame) athletics director and Wahoo lacrosse head coach? Or Irish all-ACC short-stick defensive midfielder Carlson Milikin, a Richmond, Virginia, product who transferred to Notre Dame after playing at Virginia from 2013-16?
–Virginia owns 17 overall previous ACC titles but hasn’t won one of those since 2010. In fact, since Notre Dame and Syracuse joined the league in 2014 and Maryland departed a season later, the Wahoos haven’t participated in the ACC Championship, instead playing in the showcase game four straight seasons from 2014-17. Prior to Friday night’s win over Syracuse, Virginia’s last ACC Championship appearance came in a 2013 title game loss to North Carolina. Since the ACC Championship began in 1989, the Cavaliers have won six times (1997, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2006 and 2010).
–Charlottesville is the ACC Championship site for the ninth time — also in 1990, 1994, 1996-97-98 (Virginia won in 1997), 2003 (Virginia won it), 2008 and 2012. Notre Dame has yet to play host to the ACC Championship but is slated to do so in 2020.
–This is the final year for the current championship format. Next year in Chapel Hill, the four and five seeds will play on Thursday and the winner of that game will face the top-seeded squad in Saturday semifinals (with the two and three seeds meeting in the other semifinal). The two semifinal winners will meet for the title the next weekend (either Saturday or Sunday) at the home of the higher remaining seed.
–With a week to go until the 2018 NCAA bracket is revealed, there already has been plenty of conjecture about prospects for the five ACC programs. It’s safe to say that both Notre Dame and Virginia impressively passed the eye test Friday night in terms of solid 60-minute performances against quality opponents.
–Notre Dame (now 7-5) came into action Friday having played the second-toughest schedule in the country according to the NCAA (opponents with a combined .636 winning percentage). Virginia (now 11-4) stood 18th in that survey (.555).
–Among those watching Friday night in the Klockner Stadium press box was former Virginia head coach Jim Adams, who coached Kevin Corrigan in his playing days in Charlottesville. After the Cavaliers’ late-game win over Syracuse, Corrigan kidded his former coach that it ought to be clear who Adams should be cheering for on Sunday since only one of his former players would be coaching on the sideline. Adams coached Virginia to ACC crowns (at least a share) in 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985 and 1986. Gene Corrigan coached the Wahoos to their 1962 and 1964 ACC titles.
–With both Bryan Costabile and Brendan Gleason back in top form after missing multiple games earlier in the year — and with finishers Ryder Garnsey and Mikey Wynne playing their roles in noteworthy fashion — Notre Dame Friday night looked like the proficient offensive team head coach Kevin Corrigan thought he would see all season.
–The title game sets up as something of a contrast in styles: Virginia takes more shots per game than any team in the ACC. Notre Dame takes the fewest. The same is true for shots on goal. The Irish are the least-penalized team in the conference. Virginia is the most-penalized. Virginia and Notre Dame are the top two teams in the league in faceoff win percentage.
–Notre Dame’s defense will be put to the test Sunday. Virginia boasts three of the top five goal-scorers in the ACC in sophomore Michael Kraus (40), sophomore Dox Aitken (34) and freshman Ian Laviano (32). Irish leaders in that category are sophomore Bryan Costabile (24) and junior Ryder Garnsey (21). In the 2018 regular-season meeting at Notre Dame, Kraus had four goals, Aitken and Costabile two each. In that game Notre Dame built a 4-0 lead in the opening 4:38.
–No matter what happens Sunday both teams have one more regular-season opportunity. Notre Dame plays host to Army next Saturday. Virginia plays host to VMI Tuesday night.
Senior associate athletics director John Heisler has been following Irish athletic fortunes since 1978.