No. 3 Virginia men’s lacrosse beats No. 1 Notre Dame 12-8

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - The No. 3 ranked Virginia men’s lacrosse team got four goals from Xander Dickson and a hat trick from senior transfer Thomas McConvey on Senior Day at Klockner stadium in beating Notre Dame 12-8.

Virginia sophomore goalie Matt Nunes had a career-high 19 saves, including seven in the fourth quarter to preserve the win.

“It was really impressive what [Matthew Nunes] is doing”, said coach Lars TIffany after the game. “His run has really started [since] the first time we played Notre Dame. Going into the Notre Dame game, we were a little unsure. Since then, he is seeing the ball really well. Kip Turner is doing a fantastic job with him. But to me, it’s certainly the defense – what we did in front. We were physical. We were chippy. There weren’t a lot of hands-free step-down shots. Every time 13 touched the ball – you know he doesn’t need much time – but we were just getting to him. We were just checking 8 right before [he could shoot]. I was really happy with our short-stick[defensive-midfield] play. And certainly, Cade and Cole. What those two can do to the Kavanaugh brothers, nobody can do that.”

Virginia sweeps Notre Dame this season winning both games. The ‘Hoos won in South Bend 15-10 in March.

WITH THE WIN…

Virginia tallied its sixth consecutive win over the Irish and extended its lead in the series to 11-8.
The last time Notre Dame defeated UVA on its home field was in the 2018 ACC Tournament.
The Cavaliers finished the 2023 regular season with an 11-3 overall record and went 4-2 in ACC play. UVA has finished with an overall winning record in all seven seasons under head coach Lars Tiffany.
UVA claimed its 17th all-time win over a No. 1 opponent. The Cavaliers are now 17-28 (.378) against No. 1 foes all-time.
In games versus No. 1 teams all-time, UVA opponents’ average margin of victory is just 2.12 goals.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Sunday’s contest marked the 11th instance in which Virginia has a faced a No. 1 ranked team in the same season. UVA has now faced two top-ranked teams in the last three seasons.
Matthew Nunes posted a career-high 19 saves, shattering his previous best of 18, which he set at Duke (April15) earlier this season.
The last time a UVA goalie recorded at least 19 saves in a single game was on March 10, 2019, when Alex Rode made 19 saves against Brown.
With four goals on the day, Xander Dickson (56g) is now tied for first with Doug Knight (1996) on UVA’s single season goals list.
Dickson’s five points also allowed him to crack the top 10 on UVA’s single season points list. With 74 points on the year, he is tied for ninth with Michael Watson and Tim Whiteley, both of whom finished the 1996 season with 74 points each.
With three assists, Connor Shellenberger is now tied for sixth all-time on UVA’s career assists list with 129. Shellenberger is tied with Jay Connor (1969-72).
With three goals, Thomas McConvey extended his point streak to 67 games. Having registered at least one point in all 67 career games, McConvey’s streak is the longest among all active Division-I players. For his career, McConvey has amassed 153 goals and 67 assists.
McConvey, now with 26 goals and 20 assists on the year, is tied for fifth on UVA’s single season points list by a midfielder. He needs just seven more points to break Dox Aitken’s 2019 record of 52.
With one assist, Payton Cormier extended his point streak to 42 games. During his streak, Cormier has registered 124 goals and 25 assists.
Cormier saw his 17-game goal streak come to an end. His streak began April 16, 2022, a span in which he scored 59 goals.

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