Defense dominates in Jays' 9-7 win - Schwartzman makes career-high 20 saves; Huntley scores three goals and two assists

Revenge is sweet.

And when it comes against a team that just two years ago snatched an NCAA Championship trophy from your grasp, it is even sweeter.

After the Johns Hopkins men's lacrosse team handily defeated No. 2 Virginia this past Saturday afternoon on Homewood Field, there was plenty to cheer about -- especially within the newly-designed student section of the stands.

Led by freshman attacker Kevin Huntley's hat trick in the fourth quarter, the Blue Jays outscored the Cavilers 9-7 to earn the critical victory. Hopkins (5-0) remains in the number one position in the polls while Virginia (6-1) had its six-game winning streak snapped. With just one more home win, the Jays will tie the school record for consecutive home wins, which currently stands at 31 straight games.

"We came out strong offensively and took advantage of our opportunities," said senior defenseman and co-captain Chris Watson.

Virginia's Drew Thompson fired the first shot of the game, but sophomore goalkeeper Jesse Schwartzman set the tone for the day, making the first of his career-high 20 saves.

"My first save was big," said Schwartzman. "It's always a plus for a goalie to make the first save."

A few minutes later, Hopkins drew first blood as freshman midfielder Paul Rabil scored another unassisted goal at 8:15 into the first quarter, giving the Blue Jays a 1-0 lead. Hopkins methodically built its lead to 3-0 before Virginia found its offensive rhythm.

The Cavaliers out scored Hopkins 3-1 in the second quarter, knotting the score at 4-4 heading into halftime. But that is as close as Virginia came to taking a lead. The Jays scored the first goal of the second half and did not relinquish the lead for the remainder of the game.

"We had to be ready to defend their guys away from goal when we came out at halftime and our guys did a great job covering the ball," said Watson. "When we started the third quarter 4-4, we were ready to play harder and with more emotion. The first couple of goals coming out were huge and we were fortunate to get them."

Hopkins took the lead within the first few minutes of the half with a goal by senior attackman and co-captain Peter LeSueur, assisted by Huntley.

"That first goal of the half was very good for our team because we caused the Virginia defense to break down," said LeSueur. "Kevin dodged with the ball and my man slid, leaving me open on the crease."

The quarter ended 6-5 in Hopkins' favor after the two teams traded goals. Senior midfielder and co-captain Kyle Harrison found the net for the Jays, but was answered by Virginia junior Matt Ward's goal.

Huntley's fourth-quarter hat trick then provided the Jays with enough of a cushion to assure the win.

"It was tough to see [senior attackman] Kyle [Barrie] go down in the first quarter, but Kevin obviously stepped it up in the fourth quarter," said LeSueur of Huntley, who replaced Barrie after an early ankle injury.

Huntley began his scoring spree by converting an assist from LeSueur.

"Matt Feild made a great play on the sidelines and redirected the ball to Benson Erwin who gave it to me," LeSueur said. "I started going towards the goal before I saw Kevin had a better angle, and he did a nice job of faking goal and hitting the net."

Huntley then scored two more goals, another of which was assisted by LeSueur in a six-minute span.

"I was in a good position to go towards goal, and I passed to him and he scored a nice uplifting goal," said LeSueur.

Meanwhile, Virginia's offense buckled under the pressure of Hopkins' consistently stingy defense.

"Virginia was forced to take a lot of outside shots because our defense played so well and took away inside opportunities," said Schwartzman. "Our faceoff team did well gaining possession of the ball, especially in the second half."

The Jays held all Cavaliers, except standout Matt Ward, to one point or less. Virginia entered Saturday's match up averaging 13.7 goals per game. Hopkins held the Cavs to just under half that amount.

"Jesse made some big saves in goal and we played good defense. Tom Garvey shut out his man," said Watson. "It was great to see a freshmen step in and play with poise and composure. We practice with a bunch of guys with the expectation that we will have someone else if a starter suffers an injury."

The crowd of 8,321 featured the first-ever all students section, dubbed "The Nest."

"We have a great rivalry between Virginia and so it was nice to beat them at home with the support of student section," said Watson. "We really appreciate the kids that came out."

One of the most successful school spirit building endeavors in recent memory, the Nest was packed with screaming students.

"It was really awesome to have the support of the student section," said LeSueur. "It was a great idea to create it, and it was very uplifting and motivating for us as a team."

This Saturday Hopkins will not have that homefield advantage, as they travel south down Tobacco Road to face off against the University of North Carolina.

"Their record this season is not indicative of their potential," said Watson of the Tar Heels, who have tumbled all the way down to No. 17 in the rankings. "We haven't played well at UNC the past four years and we're looking to improve upon that."

The past four meetings between Hopkins and the University of North Carolina have been decided by one goal.

"We always play a tough game and they play especially well down at their home field," said LeSueur.

Though Hopkins won't put its home winning streak to the test this Saturday, it will put its number one ranking and undefeated record on the line in North Carolina.