Virginia's Rally Falls Short in 15-13 Loss to Notre Dame in ACC Quarterfinals

Though they trailed by as many as six goals at multiple points in the game, the Cavaliers refused to concede defeat. UVA scored five-straight goals as part of an incredible 7-1 run that spanned the third and fourth quarters to tie the game, but the Fighting Irish came up with just enough plays in the final minutes of the game to seal the win.

No. 4 seed Virginia staged a remarkable comeback, but it wasn't enough to avoid a 15-13 loss to No. 5 seed Notre Dame in the quarterfinals of the ACC Women's Lacrosse Championship on Wednesday afternoon at American Legion Memorial Stadium in Charlotte.

Back on March 25th, it was the Cavaliers who jumped out to a big lead and had to hold off a comeback effort from the Fighting Irish to win 16-13 in Charlottesville. The reverse happened in the rematch between these two teams in the ACC Quarterfinals.

Virginia was fighting an uphill battle in the first quarter due to a heavy disadvantage in possession time. Notre Dame won seven of the nine draw controls in the opening period and got three goals from Jackie Wolak to build an early 5-2 lead. Ashlyn McGovern scored for UVA to narrow the deficit to 5-3 at the end of the first quarter.

Madison Ahern scored two-straight goals in the first three minutes of the second quarter, sparking a 4-0 Notre Dame run to go ahead 9-3. Virginia responded with Rachel Clark assisting on a pair of goals from McGovern and Morgan Schwab and then Mackenzie Hoeg found the back of the net to make it 9-6 with just 52 seconds left in the half. Notre Dame won the ensuing draw and Hannah Dorney scored to get the Irish lead back to 10-6 going into halftime.

The Fighting Irish scored twice to open the third quarter to push their lead back to six goals at 12-6, but then the tides turned as the Cavaliers started to gain the upper hand at the draw. Virginia won the next eight draw controls and used that edge to go on a pivotal 5-0 run to get back into the game. Clark started the run with a goal and McGovern scored two goals during the run as well. Morgan Schwab assisted on three of the five goals, including one to McGovern to get the Hoos back within one at 12-11 early in the fourth quarter.

Goalie play has been a weakness for the Cavaliers all season and it continued on Wednesday, as Julie Myers switched goalies twice in the first quarter. But in the third quarter, Abby Jansen made four big saves as Virginia held Notre Dame scoreless for nearly 15 minutes of game time, allowing the Hoos to climb back into the game.

Kasey Choma scored a goal for Notre Dame to stop the bleeding, but Rachel Clark responded with back-to-back goals to tie the game with five and a half minutes left in regulation.

Clark won the ensuing draw control to Mackenzie Hoeg giving UVA a quick chance to tie the game, but Hoeg's shot on the doorstep went right into the chest of Notre Dame goalie Lilly Callahan. That led to a goal on the other end as Jackie Wolak passed to Kristen Shanahan, who fired home a shot from the left wing to give the Irish a 15-13 lead with two minutes to go.

Notre Dame won the next draw and killed most of the clock, but UVA got the ball back with 30 seconds left, maintaining a slim chance of pulling off a miracle. Clark had a chance to get it back to a one-goal game with 13 seconds remaining, but her eight-meter shot was saved by Callahan and that sealed the win for the Irish.

Ashlyn McGovern paced the Cavaliers with four goals and Rachel Clark tallied three goals and two assists. Mackenzie Hoeg had a hat trick and Morgan Schwab had one goal and four assists. UVA had a slim advantage in shots (27-26) and shots on goal (21-20) but Notre Dame's 8-5 edge in saves proved to be the difference.

Notre Dame advances to the ACC semifinals and will face No. 1 seed Boston College on Friday. Virginia falls to 11-6 and will await an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament field, which will be revealed on Sunday, May 7th

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