Stanwick Takes Over, Helps UVA Avert Upset
from staff reports
PHILADELPHIA -- Drexel smelled another upset. Steele Stanwick had other plans.
With Virginia down one going into the fourth quarter, Stanwick scored three of the game's next four goals, sparking the turnaround that allowed the No. 3-ranked Cavaliers to escape with an 11-8 win over the unranked Dragons.
The win was UVA head coach Dom Starsia's 200th with the institution.
Stanwick added two assists for a game-high five points.
Drexel, which stunned then-No. 1 ranked and defending national champion Virginia in 2007, fell to the Wahoos for the third straight time since then.
Scott Perri scored a team-high three goals for the Dragons,
including a score with 5:40 remaining in the game to tie the score
at 8-8. Mark Manos, the 2009 CAA Rookie of the Year, had an
outstanding game between the pipes, as he made 17 saves. It was a
standing-room only crowd of 1,472 at Vidas Field.
The Dragons took a 7-6 lead into the final period but Stanwick
knotted the score just 38 seconds into the quarter before giving
Virginia an 8-7 lead just over two minutes later on another score.
Both teams had chances over the next seven minutes but it was Perri
who capitalized in front of the net after taking a pass from
freshman Aaron Prosser to tie the score. With 3:37 remaining,
Stanwick delivered his third score, this one coming from the right
side of the field, in what turned out to be the game-winner. Drexel
looked to equalize but were turned away with Virginia gaining
possession with time winding down. The Dragons turned up their
defensive pressure with Manos leaving the crease to try and create
a turnover but the Cavaliers iced the game with goals from Rhamel
Bratton and Chris Bocklet to give Virginia a three-goal
victory.
Drexel opened the game with an impressive first period as the
Dragons won all six of the period's face-offs and jumped out to an
early lead. Colin Ambler got the crowd cheering early with a goal
just 45 seconds into the game. After Connor English tied the score,
Perri finished off a pass from Ambler to give Drexel the lead. Just
nine seconds later, Zak Fisher won the face-off by scooping up the
ball and raced in front of the net and beat Adam Ghitelman to give
the Dragons a 3-1 edge. Adam Dennis capped the first-period scoring
with a tally with just 1:06 remaining that handed Virginia a
three-goal deficit.
The Cavaliers responded with a big second quarter that saw the
visitors reel off five straight goals to take a 6-4 lead before
Kevin Stockel connected after taking a pass from Dennis. After
halftime, Drexel's defense stepped up to shut out the Cavaliers in
the third period while Ambler and Perri scored to give the Dragons
the lead entering the final stanza. Manos stopped all five shots on
goal the Cavaliers managed in the period including a save on a
one-on-none breakaway just before the end of the period that sent
the Vidas Field crowd into a frenzy. But the Cavaliers came through
with five goals in the fourth quarter to evade the Dragons' upset
bid.
Virginia outshot Drexel, 46-30, including a 15-5 edge in the
pivotal fourth quarter. Drexel's Dana Wilber racked up a game-high
10 groundballs as he came up with many key loose balls on defense
and on face-offs. The Dragons won 13 of the game's 23 face-offs
with Fisher leading Drexel with wins in seven of his 10 visits to
the "X". Ambler totaled two goals and an assist but was charged
with seven turnovers. Ghitelman made eight stops in the net for
Virginia to earn the victory.
The victory etches Starsia's name in the history books as the
second coach in the history of the sport to win 200-plus games at
one school, while also reaching the 100-win plateau at another
school. Starsia becomes the first coach to reach the feat at two
Division I schools.
Georgetown's Dave Urick accomplished the feat first, as the Hoyas'
final win of the 2009 season elevated him into the 200/100 club.
Urick's first 122 victories came at Hobart College when he led the
school to 10 NCAA Division III titles.
Overall, Starsia's 301 career wins breaks a tie he shared with
former Massachusetts head coach Dick Garber for second most
all-time by a coach at a Division I school.
"With all modesty, as I get older I find myself more impressed with
the numbers in my life," said Starsia. "I become more impressed
whether it's years married, games coached or games won because it
means I have been doing what I do for awhile and I respect that and
I respect the people all around me that have helped me get to where
I am today."
"I knew we would have our hands full coming on the road to play a
good Drexel team and that is the way the game played out," said
Starsia. "I thought we were tentative early on both the offensive
and defensive end. Eventually we got to it a little bit - the
faceoff guys picked it up in the second half. Steele [Stanwick]
came alive in the second half and I thought the defense settle down
and did a nice job. We got some stops when we needed them."
Bocklet added four points on two scores and two assists, while Matt
Lovejoy (Orford, N.H.) had a team-high seven ground balls for
Virginia. Ken Clausen (Downingtown, Pa.) returned home and chipped
in five ground balls and a game-high five caused turnovers. Adam
Ghitelman (Syosset, N.Y.) added eight saves in the cage.
Perri led the Dragons' attack with three goals, followed by
Ambler's two scores and assist, as both players led Drexel with
three points. Dana Wilber added a game-high 10 ground balls. Mark
Manos had a game-high 17 saves in goal.
Virginia returns on short rest on Tuesday when the Cavaliers travel
to take on Mount St. Mary's. Faceoff is set for 3 p.m. in
Emmitsburg, Md.
