Matt Riley/Virginia Athletics
Previewing the 2022 Virginia Field Hockey Season
This weekend, the Virginia field hockey team will begin its 17th season under head coach Michele Madison.
In 2021, UVA qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the 25th time in program history and 13th time under Madison. It was an up-and-down year for the Cavaliers, who finished the regular season 10-7. Virginia advanced to the ACC Championship game, knocking off No. 4 Boston College and top-seeded Louisville in the process, before falling to North Carolina in the title game. UVA had a tough draw in the NCAA Tournament, having to travel to College Park to face No. 5 Maryland. The Cavaliers fell 2-1 to the Terrapins in the first round, spelling the end of their season.
Now, UVA turns the page and focuses on a new season and a new opportunity to return to the Final Four, which last happened for the Hoos in the 2019 season. The Cavaliers did lose some key pieces from last year's squad, but they return a number of core contributors and add a talented incoming freshmen class.
Virginia is ranked No. 12 in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) preseason poll and the Hoos were picked to finish fourth in the ACC coaches poll, behind Boston College, Syracuse, and North Carolina, the preseason favorite to win the conference title.
Once again, the Atlantic Coast Conference has a strong argument as the best and most competitive league in Division I field hockey, as each of the conference's seven teams are ranked in the preseason poll, including five in the top 15. ACC teams have won 21 NCAA championships all-time and the conference has had a participant in the national title game in 29 of the last 33 seasons. At the very least, Virginia will be well-tested by the country's best field hockey teams by the time postseason play comes around.
Here's a breakdown of the roster and schedule for the 2022 Virginia field hockey season:
Roster Breakdown
Before taking a look at UVA's roster for this fall, let's take a look at some notable departures from last year's team. Virginia lost a pair of three-time NFHCA All-American back-line defenders in Rachel Robinson and Amber Ezechiels. Robinson became the first Cavalier to ever be voted a team captain four times in her career, while Ezechiels led the team in scoring with seven goals and 19 points and was named both the ACC Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week on separate occasions in 2021.
Additionally, Virginia lost two-time team captain Makayla Gallen, who ended her career as the program's leader in games played with 101 appearances, 93 of which were starts. Other losses include midfielder Greer Gill, who was the team's leader in assists last year, striker Peyton Tollaksen, who tallied nine goals in her career, and goalkeepers Lauren Hausheer and Taylor Henriksen.
With the bad news out of the way, now we examine the talented players Virginia has at each position on this year's roster.
Leading the striker unit is Laura Janssen, who was tied for the team lead in scoring with five goals and 12 points. Janssen scored game-winners against Wake Forest and Boston College and converted two shootout attempts to clinch the victory against Louisville in the semifinals of the ACC Championship. Janssen is joined up front by sophomore Taryn Tkachuk, who is back after recording three goals and an assist in nine games before her freshman campaign was cut short due to injury. UVA also brings back juniors Lilly Hengerer, Esha Shah, and Mary VanLoh at the striker position.
At midfield, senior Adele Iacobucci was UVA's sole representation on the All-ACC Preseason Team. However, Iacobucci, who tallied four goals and three assists and was selected to the NFHCA All-South Region First Team last year, had an emergency appendectomy this week, so she is expected to miss some significant time. In her absence, Virginia will look to a few players to pick up the slack in the midfield.
Graduate student Annie McDonough is back for a fifth season after earning All-ACC Second-Team honors in 2021. McDonough was a team captain last year and was second on the team with 12 points on four goals and four assists. Also returning is sophomore Noa Boterman, who put together a very strong first-year campaign, finishing second on the team with five goals in 20 appearances. Senior Danielle Husar and juniors Anneloes Knol and Meghen Hengerer bring depth and experience to the midfield unit as well.
Unfortunately, many of UVA's key losses from last year's roster are concentrated on the back defensive line, with Rachel Robinson, Amber Ezechiels, and Makayla Gallen all departing from the program this offseason. Headlining the backs is sophomore Jans Croon, who started all 21 games as a true freshman in 2021. Croon was one of three Cavaliers to start every game last season and she also played for the USA Field Hockey U-21 team this summer in Dublin, Ireland. Joining Croon is senior Cato Geusgens, who tallied six assists in 15 appearances last fall and started all 18 games for the Cavaliers in the 2020-2021 season. Crucially, Virginia supplemented the position with a graduate transfer from UConn, Lindsay Dickinson, who started in 72 games over the course of four seasons with the Huskies. Dickinson recorded five assists last year and was a selection to both the All-Big East Second Team and the NFHCA Mideast Region Second Team in 2021.
In the cage will be sophomore Tyler Kennedy, who started 17 games in goal as a true freshman last fall. Kennedy had an 8-8 record, including two shutouts, and ranked second in the ACC with a save percentage of .735.
Schedule Breakdown
As usual, Virginia's 2022 schedule features a sampling of many of the best field hockey teams in the country. 12 of UVA's 17 regular season games will be against opponents ranked in the preseason NFHCA top 25.
Virginia's schedule includes games against No. 2 North Carolina, No. 4 Maryland, No. 6 Liberty, No. 9 Louisville, No. 10 Syracuse, No. 11 Penn State, No. 16 Saint Joseph's, No. 17 Delaware, No. 18 Duke, No. 19 Old Dominion, No. 20 Wake Forest, and No. 24 Miami (Ohio).
In non-conference play, the Cavaliers host Temple, JMU, St. Joe's, William & Mary, Miami (Ohio), and Kent State on senior day. Virginia is on the road at Penn State, Delaware, Northwestern, Liberty, and Maryland for the regular season finale.
UVA's ACC slate includes road games at Boston College, Duke, and North Carolina and home games against Syracuse, Louisville, and Wake Forest.
The 2022 ACC Field Hockey Championship takes place from November 1-4 in Durham, North Carolina.
See Virginia's full 17-game regular season schedule below:
| Date/Time | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|
Aug. 26 at 5pm | at Penn State | University Park, PA |
Aug. 28 at 1pm | at Delaware | Newark, DE |
Sept. 2 at 6pm | Temple | Charlottesville, VA |
Sept. 4 at 1pm | James Madison | Charlottesville, VA |
Sept. 11 at 12pm | at Northwestern | Evanston, IL |
Sept. 16 at 4pm | at Boston College | Newton, MA |
Sept. 18 at 2pm | Saint Joseph's | Charlottesville, VA |
Sept. 23 at 4pm | Syracuse | Charlottesville, VA |
Sept. 30 at 3pm | Louisville | Charlottesville, VA |
Oct. 2 at 1pm | William & Mary | Charlottesville, VA |
Oct. 7 at 6pm | at Duke | Durham, NC |
Oct. 9 at 1pm | Miami (Ohio) | Charlottesville, VA |
Oct. 14 at 5pm | Wake Forest | Charlottesville, VA |
Oct. 18 at 4pm | at Liberty | Lynchburg, VA |
Oct. 21 at 4pm | at North Carolina | Chapel Hill, NC |
Oct. 23 at 12pm | Kent State | Charlottesville, VA |
Oct. 26 at 5pm | at Maryland | College Park, MD |
Virginia will begin the 2022 season with a pair of road matches this weekend at No. 11 Penn State on Friday at 5pm and at No. 17 Delaware on Sunday at 1pm.
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