Nov. 20, 2003

VIRGINIA VS. SETON HALL SERIES: Virginia leads the all-time series with Seton Hall in men's soccer 3-2-0. However, SHU has defeated UVa in the last two meetings. The two teams met earlier this year in the season-opener for both teams back on August 29th in the second contest of the 2003 Virginia Soccer Classic in Charlottesville. Seton Hall defeated Virginia by the score of 1-0 in that match. The last time UVa and SHU met in the postseason, Seton Hall defeated Virginia by the score of 1-0 on November 25th in the 2001 NCAA Tournament in Charlottesville.

UVA IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT: Thanks to its automatic bid into the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship this season, Virginia advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 23rd consecutive year and will be making its 62nd appearance in a NCAA Tournament contest when it faces Seton Hall. UVa stands 40-19-2 all-time in the history of the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship. The Cavaliers have won five National Championships after claiming the title in 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994.

VIRGINIA SCORES ONLY ONE GOAL EN ROUTE TO ACC CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE: When UVa began play in the ACC Tournament in the quarterfinal round, Virginia needed to play their best soccer of the year to get to where it wanted to be - the last team standing. UVa advanced past the quarterfinals, the semifinals and the finals round to claim the 2003 ACC Championship in surprising fashion - by scoring just one goal! UVa advanced past Clemson in the ACC Quarterfinal round after a scoreless 0-0 tie after outscoring the Tigers in the penalty kick shootout, 3-1. Virginia then slipped past Wake Forest in the ACC Semifinals after an own goal by the Demon Deacons to give the Cavaliers a 1-0 victory. UVa then got past Maryland in the ACC Finals following a 1-1 tie by outscoring the Terrapins 7-6 in another penalty kick shootout. Through its three games played, the only goal scored by the Cavaliers in the ACC Tournament was by John Hartman in the ACC Finals against Maryland. Hartman's goal tied and game and eventually sent the match into overtime.

BURKE, OLIVER & HARTMAN NAMED TO 2003 ACC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Virginia entered the 2003 ACC Tournament with a slight limp in its step. The Cavaliers entered the quarterfinals round of the ACC Tournament with a losing record (8-9-0) and had dropped their previous three matches. If UVa was going to compete for the ACC title, it would need both a solid individual and team effort. Virginia got just that as the trio of Ryan Burke, Matt Oliver and John Hartman helped guide UVa to the ACC Title sparked buy its solid defense. The three players were each named to the 2003 ACC All-Tournament Team. Burke was named the tournament's MVP. Here is a complete look at the 2003 ACC All-Tournament Team:

2003 ACC All-Tournament Team

Name			School
Ryan Burke (MVP)		Virginia
Matt Oliver		Virginia
John Hartman		Virginia
Clarance Goodson		Maryland
Sumed Ibrahim		Maryland
Jason Garey		Maryland
Seth Stammler		Maryland
Scott Buete		Maryland
Jeremiah White		Wake Forest
Blake Camp		Duke
Jorge Gonzalez		N.C. State

'HOOS AGAINST THE TOP 25: Virginia is 3-4-1 against teams ranked in Soccer America's Top 25. Here is a look at UVa's matches against the Top 25:

Date	Opponents	Score	Location
11/16	#2 Maryland	T, 1-1	Cary, N.C.
11/14	#3 Wake Forest	W, 1-0	Cary, N.C.
11/7	#12 VCU		L, 2-1	Charlottesville, Va.
10/31	#3 Maryland	L, 1-0	College Park, Md.
9/21	#4 North Carolina	W, 1-0	Charlottesville, Va.
9/13	#2 Wake Forest	W, 2-1	Charlottesville, Va.
9/7	#1 UCLA		L, 4-0	College Park, Md.
8/31	#13 Saint Louis	L, 3-2 	Charlottesville, Va.

TO BE (RANKED), OR NOT TO BE, THAT IS THE QUESTION: Through its first 20 games this season, Virginia turned in an overall record of 9-9-2. UVa has been ranked in seven of the 20 matches it has played in. In the matches it has been ranked, Virginia's record is 2-5-0. However, in its matches it is not ranked, UVa is 7-4-2.

VIRGINIA'S RANKINGS/RECORD: Virginia is ranked #22 in the Soccer America Top 25 poll and is not ranked in the NSCAA/adidas Top 25 poll this week. UVa entered the 2003 season ranked in several national preseason polls. Virginia was ranked #14 in the NSCAA/adidas Top 25, #16 in the SoccerTimes Top 25, #19 in the Soccer America Top 25 and #21 in the College Soccer News' Poll. Since the beginning of the 1984 season, the Cavaliers have been the top-ranked team in 71 Soccer America polls and 55 NSCAA polls (formerly the ISAA poll). Virginia was ranked in 183 consecutive NSCAA polls dating back to September of 1983 until the streak was snapped on 10/25/99, and was ranked in 177 consecutive Soccer America polls since September of 1984 until the streak ended on 10/4/99. Here is a week-by-week look at Virginia's rankings this season in Soccer America and NSCAA Top-25 Polls:

Week		Soccer America	NSCAA
Preseason		#19	#14
September 1	NR	NR
September 8	NR	NR
September 15	#17	NR
September 22	#7	#18
September 29	NR	NR
October 6	NR	NR
October 13	#25	NR
October 20	NR	NR
October 27	NR	NR
November 3	NR	NR
November 10	NR	NR
November 17	#22	NR

VIRGINIA IN THE ACC TOURNAMENT: Virginia stands 26-9-5 all-time in the history of the ACC Championship. UVa has advanced to the ACC Finals 14 of the 17 times the tournament has been played and has won the ACC Tournament title on eight occasions. The Cavaliers claimed the ACC Tournament title in: 1988, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997 and 2003. Virginia has competed in the ACC Finals the past five consecutive seasons (1999-2003).

UVA MAKES ACC FINALS FOR FIFTH CONSECUTIVE SEASON: Virginia made its fifth consecutive appearance in the ACC Finals after advancing to the championship game against Maryland on November 16th. Unlike its previous four consecutive trips to the ACC Finals where UVa lost the title game, the Cavaliers tied the Terrapins and claimed the ACC title by outscoring Maryland 7-6 in penalty kicks in the shootout.

FIVE CAVALIERS NAMED TO ALL-ACC TEAMS: Virginia had five individuals represented on the 2003 All-Atlantic Coast Conference Teams. The All-ACC teams were made up of a First Team, Second Team and All-Freshman Team. UVa's Matt Oliver was named as a First Team All-ACC selection, Mike Littlefield was selected a Second Team All-ACC choice, and the trio of Adam Cristman, Will Hall and Ryan Burke were named to the ACC All-Freshman squad.

Oliver's selection as an All-ACC player marks the third consecutive year he has been honored by being named to the teams. He was also named to the 2001 and 2002 All-ACC Second Teams the past two seasons.

ACC regular-season champions Maryland and second-seeded Wake Forest placed seven players each on the 2003 All-ACC Men's Soccer Teams. North Carolina had three selections over the two squads, while Virginia had two and Clemson, Duke and N.C. State had one selection apiece. The 2003 ACC All-Freshmen Team was also announced, featuring three players from North Carolina and Virginia, two from Duke and Wake Forest and one from N.C. State.

Wake Forest's Jeremiah White was tabbed as the 2003 ACC Player of the Year, while Maryland's Sasho Cirovski garnered 2003 ACC Coach of the Year recognition. North Carolina's Jamie Watson was selected the 2003 ACC Freshman of the Year.

Here is a closer look at the 2003 All-ACC Men's Soccer Teams:

2003 All-ACC First Team
Name		School			Position
Scott Buete	Maryland		Midfield
Blake Camp	Duke			Midfield
Kenny Cutler	Clemson			Midfield
Will Hesmer	Wake Forest		Goalkeeper
Sumed Ibrahim	Maryland		Midfield
Aaron King	NC State			Forward
Matt Oliver	Virginia			Defender
Michael Parkhurst	Wake Forest		Defender
Seth Stammler	Maryland		Defender
Marcus Storey	North Carolina		Forward
Jeremiah White	Wake Forest		Forward

2003 All-ACC Second Team
Name		School			Position
Vicente Bastidas	Wake Forest		Midfield
Clarence Goodson	Maryland		Defender
Mike Littlefield	Virginia			Forward
Amir Lowery	Wake Forest		Midfield
Domenic Mediate	Maryland		Forward
Tim Merritt	North Carolina		Defender
Justin Moose	Wake Forest		Midfield
Noah Palmer	Maryland		Goalkeeper
Scott Sealy	Wake Forest		Forward
Abe Thompson	Maryland		Forward
Jamie Watson	North Carolina		Forward

2003 ACC All-Freshmen Team
Name		School			Position
Corey Ashe	North Carolina		Forward
Ryan Burke	Virginia		              Goalkeeper
Adam Cristman	Virginia			Forward
Steven Curfman	Wake Forest		Midfield
Santiago Fusilier	NC State			Midfield
Will Hall		Virginia			Midfield
Michael Harrington North Carolina		Midfield
Kyle Helton	Duke			Defender
Chris Loftus	Duke			Forward
Wells Thompson	Wake Forest		Midfield
Jamie Watson	North Carolina		Forward

ACC Player of the Year:  Jeremiah White, Wake Forest.
ACC Freshman of the Year:  Jamie Watson, North Carolina.
ACC Coach of the Year:  Sasho Cirovski, Maryland.

RIGHT WHERE THEY WERE PICKED TO FINISH: Virginia was picked to finish third in the 2003 ACC Preseason Coaches Poll, and that is exactly where UVa finished. In fact, the top four teams finished in the order they were projected to finish. Below is the projected and actual finish for the 2003 ACC standings:

Rank	Projected Finish		Actual Finish
1. 	Maryland           		Maryland
2. 	Wake Forest       		Wake Forest
3. 	VIRGINIA        		VIRGINIA
4. 	North Carolina   		North Carolina
5. 	Clemson         		N.C. State
6. 	Duke            		Clemson
7. 	N.C. State          		Duke

GELNOVATCH TOPS 100 AND IS CLIMBING: UVa men's soccer head soccer coach George Gelnovatch recorded his 100th career head coaching victory on August 30th, 2002 when Virginia defeated #25 Kentucky by the score of 3-2. Gelnovatch, in his eighth season as head coach at UVa, has recorded 123 wins as a head coach at Virginia with a career record of 123-44-14, including a mark of 29-13-6 in the ACC. By reaching the 100-win mark, it makes him only the second UVa men's soccer coach to record the milestone. Former Virginia men's soccer head coach Bruce Arena holds UVa's all-time coaching victory mark with 295 (295-59-31, 74-21-11 ACC).

HOME SWEET HOME: Virginia has enjoyed much success playing in the friendly confines of Klöckner Stadium. One of the finest college soccer facilities in the country, Klöckner Stadium has been a very tough place for opponents to record a win. Since its opening in 1992, UVa has posted an eye-opening record of 143-21-7 at Klöckner Stadium. The Cavaliers finished the 2002 regular season a perfect 12-0-0 at home and finished the 2002 season 12-1-0. Virginia is 20-6 (.769) in NCAA Tournament games held at Klöckner Stadium during the past 11 seasons, outscoring its opposition 60-23 in those games.

-- UVA --