May 5, 1999

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Virginia used a five-goal spurt in the third quarter to break open a tight contest and post a 16-11 win over Butler in Indianapolis, Ind., Wednesday afternoon, in the Cavailers' final game of the regular season. The win was the fourth in a row for Virginia, as the Cavailers upped their record to 10-3 this season. Butler falls to 8-7.

The third-ranked Cavaliers held a slim 10-8 lead at halftime over the homestanding Bulldogs in a match-up that was tight throughout the first 30 minutes. Butler won the game's opening faceoff and wasted little time getting on the board as Mike Regan scored just 12 seconds into the game.

Virginia then ran off the next four goals in a six-minute span to take the lead midway through the first quarter. Although Virginia retained the lead the rest of the way, the Cavaliers could not stretch their lead to more than four goals in the first half as the Bulldogs consistently answered Virginia goals.

The visitors from Virginia, making the longest road trip in school history, pushed the lead to 9-5 on Jay Jalbert's goal with 7:20 remaining before halftime. But Butler out-scored Virginia 3-1 to end the half and cut the Cavaliers' lead to two goals.

Jason Hard dominated the face offs in the third period winning all four as the Cavaliers used the possessions to add to their lead. Five different Cavaliers scored in the third quarter as Virginia pushed the lead to the biggest margin of the game at 15-8. The defense was also instrumental as the Cavalier defenders shut down Butler for the first 20 minutes of the second half.

Butler scored three fourth quarter goals as Virginia worked to maintain possession in the final period. Goalie Derek Kenney registered two big saves in the final eight minutes to help hold off the Bulldogs and stop any momentum.

Virginia also made the Bulldogs pay for their mistakes, scoring goals on the first three extra man opportunities. The man down defense also proved stellar as Butler could convert only one of five extra man opportunities.

Jalbert led the Cavaliers offensively with four goals, while Tucker Radebaugh notched three goals and three assists. Michael Leahy tied his career high with three goals.

Virginia now awaits an invitation to the NCAA Tournament. The tournament field will be announced on Sunday.

Scoring by Qtr.  1  2  3  4  Final
Virginia         6  4  5  1  16
Butler           4  4  0  3  11

Attendance-175

Scoring: Goals-UVa: Jay Jalbert 4, Michael Leahy 3, Tucker Radebaugh 3, David Jenkins 2, Ryan Curtis, Conor Gill, Hanley Holcomb, Jamison Mullen. Butler: Cory Kahoun 3, Mike Regan 2, Chris Vosburgh 2, Ben Focht, Matt McSweeny, Mike Nicolosi, Doug Patterson.

Assists-UVa: Radebaugh 3, Gill 2, McKnight 2, David Baruch. Butler: Kahoun 2, McSweeny, Regan, Vosburgh.

Shots-UVa 38, Butler 34.

Faceoffs-UVa 20. Butler 10.

Saves-UVa 11 (Derek Kenney 11 saves, 11 goals allowed, 34 shots, 60 minutes). Butler11 (Marc Ferrandino 11 saves, 16 goals allowed, 38 shots, 58 minutes; Chris Anastasiou 0 saves, 0 goals allowed, 0 shots, 2 minutes).

Clearing-UVa 16 of 19, Butler 20 of 21.

Ground Balls-UVa 58. Butler 31.

Penalties-UVa 5 for 4:00; Butler 8 for 7:00.

Extra-Man Opportunities-UVa 3 of 7, Butler 1 of 5.