Virginia’s surge into NCAA match rivalry was as simple as 1-2-3.
Well, maybe not simple. The 1-2-3 half? That holds up.
Thanks to a three-game profitable streak highlighted by Saturday’s 11-9 defeat of Notre Dame, the Cavaliers (6-4) are firmly within the postseason image and their eight-game skid in opposition to ACC opponents is kaput.
Consider for a second Virginia’s rise within the RPI since mid-March:
Date | RPI | SOS | Last recreation |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 15 | 35 | 14 | Lost at Maryland |
| March 22 | 24 | 15 | Beat Utah |
| March 24 | 20 | 14 | Beat Dartmouth |
| March 29 | 12 | 9 | Beat Notre Dame |
The neatest thing going for Virginia all alongside was alternatives. Losses to Richmond, Johns Hopkins, Towson and Maryland meant the Cavaliers in all probability wouldn’t have a lot to point out for his or her non-conference schedule. (A victory over High Point could but wind up as a top-20 victory.)
Yet there was all the time the four-game run by way of the ACC common season, a stretch more likely to carry Virginia’s metrics no less than a bit, no matter consequence. Last 12 months, the numbers rose even as Lars Tiffany’s crew plummeted to a 6-8 end. Saturday’s victory over beforehand undefeated Notre Dame immediately reworked the Cavaliers right into a viable NCAA chance.
Duke, Syracuse and North Carolina are nonetheless to come back, adopted by a house recreation in opposition to Drexel and (probably) the ACC match. There are loads of worthwhile resume-improving possibilities nestled in that remaining schedule, and the Cavaliers’ rise isn’t essentially full.
Still, they’re firmly within the dialog, which wasn’t the case only a couple weeks in the past.
The following relies on RPI knowledge out there on Monday, March 30.
AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS (10)
Team | W-L | RPI | SOS | T5 | T10 | T20 | LOSSES 21+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richmond | 9-0 | 4 | 25 | 0-0 | 1-0 | 3-0 | — |
| Harvard | 8-1 | 5 | 16 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 3-1 | — |
| Penn State | 6-3 | 8 | 5 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 4-1 | 2 losses vs. 21+ |
| Georgetown | 4-4 | 10 | 3 | 0-2 | 0-3 | 1-4 | — |
| Boston U | 5-4 | 16 | 10 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 1-3 | at Colgate (37) |
| Towson | 6-3 | 17 | 24 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1-2 | at Loyola (27) |
| Sacred Heart | 10-0 | 23 | 73 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | — |
| Robert Morris | 8-3 | 28 | 40 | 0-1 | 0-2 | 0-2 | at St. Bonaventure (57) |
| Jacksonville | 5-4 | 30 | 32 | 0-1 | 0-2 | 0-3 | — |
| UAlbany | 5-4 | 43 | 42 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0-3 | at UMass (24) |
Richmond may have scored 50 targets in opposition to Hobart (2-7 with an RPI of 53) and it nonetheless would have taken a metrics hit. The identical is just not true of the Spiders’ non-conference finale Saturday in Chicago in opposition to Notre Dame. That’s an actual alternative to bolster Richmond’s profile. … Harvard took its first loss Sunday, however stumbling in opposition to North Carolina didn’t harm the Crimson’s general profile. …
Thought experiment: Is “Penn State lost at home in early February to Villanova” this 12 months’s “Ohio State lost its opener at home to Utah?” The Buckeyes went on to win the Big Ten and earn a No. 4 seed final 12 months; the Nittany Lions may comply with an identical monitor to Selection Sunday this spring. … Georgetown enters the fray after demolishing Denver 17-5 to open Big East play. But the Hoyas’ energy of schedule quantity is not going to get higher; their 4 remaining league opponents personal a median RPI of 49.5. …
The Patriot League will nearly actually be a one-bid league, which ought to make Boston University’s journey to Loyola on Saturday important because the winner will take the outright lead and have an inside monitor to enjoying host to the league match. Or possibly not; the No. 1 seed hasn’t received a Patriot match remaining since 2018. … Towson as soon as once more has management of the CAA after profitable its twentieth consecutive common season convention recreation. Thanks to tiebreakers, the Tigers would successfully be two video games up with three to play in the event that they deal with Monmouth on Saturday. …
Sacred Heart leads Division I in highway victories with six. Next up with 4: Massachusetts, Penn, Syracuse and Villanova. … Robert Morris has received seven in a row, the third-longest lively streak in Division I behind Sacred Heart (10) and Richmond (9). …
Jacksonville maintains a slight RPI benefit over Utah, which sits at thirty second. Both groups received their convention openers over the weekend. … UAlbany has received its first three America East video games by a median of 5.3 targets. The Great Danes get Binghamton (2-7) at residence on Saturday.
