Virginia lacrosse teams begin seasons with high hopes

On a recent sunny afternoon, on a practice field behind University Hall, Virginia lacrosse coaches Dom Starsia and Julie Myers held press conferences as their teams prepared for the upcoming season.

Off limits were any questions about the ongoing trial of former player George Huguely, who faces a murder charge in connection with the 2010 death of former women’s player Yeardley Love.

Current members of the men’s and women’s teams weren’t made available for any kind of interviews. According to a University spokesperson, that won’t happen until today after both teams open up their 2012 seasons. The men play at Drexel, while the women host Loyola (Md.).

Last spring, the men overcame a topsy-turvy regular season to shock the lacrosse world and win an NCAA championship; the women went just 9-9 and lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to North Carolina.

This season, the Virginia men are favored to repeat. The Wahoos were voted No. 1 in all four major lacrosse preseason polls.

“That’s probably just my peers trying to be a pain as much as anything else,” Starsia joked. “I do feel like we’re a mature enough program to understand what we’re really interested in is going to be determined a couple months away.

“But I would tell you, too, that I don’t run away from the fact that we’re No. 1.”

Starsia shouldn’t. He returns reigning Tewaaraton Trophy winner Steele Stanwick.

As a junior last season, Stanwick — despite painful foot and calf injuries — led the team in scoring with 70 points (32 goals and 38 assists).

This season, he’ll have plenty of support, starting with fellow Tewaaraton Trophy watch list members Colin Briggs and Chris LaPierre.

“We have a good core of older guys, so we have stronger leadership,” Starsia said. “We [also] have some interesting young players, so it’s a good mix of guys.”

While the women’s team qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the 16th straight season last spring, they finished with just a 9-9 record — the program’s worst finish since 1995 when it went 7-7 under Jane Miller.

However, Virginia, which is ranked as high as No. 10 in one preseason poll, returns key offensive players.

UVa will be led by Tewaaraton Trophy watch list members Charlie Finnigan, Josie Owen and Julie Gardner. The trio combined to score 116 of the team’s 197 goals last season.

“I think we had a great fall,” Myers said. “I think we’re coming off of good emotion from what we were able to accomplish on the field against other opponents a few months back.

“But the best thing is we’re a little naive. We’re a little bit young, but were feisty and we’re athletic and we don’t know to be scared quite yet.”

Starsia isn’t quite sure how his team will respond to its surprising success last season.

“It was such an electrifying end to 2011 that I was very interested to see the effect that it would have in 2012 — and I don’t think it’s very easily predictable,” he said.

“But we’re off to a good start, kids came back in good shape. I think we’re all anxious to get to it.”