Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!
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16 CAVALIER CORNER BREAKOUT FEMALE ATHLETES Sammy Mueller, lacrosse — The third- year midfielder was tabbed as a first-team All-American and a first-team All-ACC per- former. She led Virginia with 72 points on 48 goals and a career-high 24 assists. In addition, she led the Cavaliers with 57 ground balls while pacing the ACC in ground balls per game (2.85) and had a team-high 27 caused turnovers to rank seventh in the ACC. Mueller matched a career high with six goals in three separate games. She scored a career-high eight points in the wins over Louisville and No. 14 Navy. Mueller fin- ished with 80 draws to rank seventh all time in a single season at UVA. Anna Redding, golf — The fourth-year received third-team All-America recognition from Golfweek and was named to the All- ACC team for the second consecutive season. She led UVA in stroke average per round at 72.85 and was the team's top finisher in six of its tournaments, including a 29th-place performance at the NCAA Championships. Redding picked up her first collegiate win at Michigan State's Mary Fossum Invita- tional in the fall. She had additional top-five finishes at the Tar Heel Invitational, Tar Heel Classic and ACC Championships, where she was fifth. During the season, Redding posted her best 54-hole collegiate score at the Mary Fossum Invitational and her career low 18- hole score with a 66 at the Tar Heel Classic. Lacy Smith, softball — The fourth-year first baseman put together a tremendous final season to earn first-team All-America status from Softball America. She was the only player from the ACC to achieve that honor, and is just the fourth Cavalier to receive All-America accolades and the first since 2004. She was also selected to the All-ACC and NFCA All-Region first teams. Smith posted a career-best .414 batting average, while setting school records in home runs (15) and slugging percentage (.784). She was the first Cavalier to hit over .400 since 2007, and her average ranks third all time at UVA. The Lancaster, Pa., product also set a school record by hitting in 16 consecutive games from Feb. 24-March 19 and drove in 43 runs in 2019, marking the eighth most in a single season in Virginia history. On 13 oc- casions, she drove in multiple runs, the most multi-RBI games by a Cavalier since 2005. TOP MALE ROOKIES Kihei Clark, basketball — He received top male rookie honors at the Hoos Choice Awards May 1 after he vaulted into a start- ing role for UVA's last 12 games. He didn't put up big numbers, but his poise, toughness and on-ball defense helped the Cavaliers win the national title. Most notably, he as- sisted on Mamadi Diakite's game-tying shot against Purdue in the Elite Eight with 0.1 seconds remaining in regulation. Clark played in 38 games with 20 starts, averaged 4.5 points per game with a 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio and ranked third on the team with 28 steals. Nic Kent, baseball — The second base- man was named a Freshman All-American by Collegiate Baseball. He also became the first Virginia first-year since 2009 to earn first-team All-ACC honors and was part of the ACC All-Freshman Team. Kent compiled a team-high 42 RBI, be- coming the first UVA first-year to lead the team in RBI in 20 years. He batted .337 — the second highest average on the team and 12th best in the ACC — and led the team with 17 stolen bases, the third most ever by a UVA first-year. Brandon Nakashima, tennis — He joined the team in January and made an immediate impact, posting a 17-5 record in singles and a 20-3 record in doubles, includ- ing going 3-0 in singles and 4-0 in doubles at the NCAA Championships. The ACC Freshman of the Year and ITA Atlantic Region Rookie of the Year was the only rookie to earn first-team All-ACC hon- ors this season. He finished the year ranked No. 64 in singles and No. 11 in doubles in the country. TOP FEMALE ROOKIES Milla Ciprian, volleyball — She set a school record for first-year players by aver- aging 1.35 blocks per set. She became just the fourth Cavalier rookie to ever record 100 blocks in a season, and her 105 total blocks were the most by a first-year since 1989. The 1.35 blocks per set stand as the fourth best average in program history, regardless of class. Ciprian also set a single-match record for blocks, recording 13 against Boston College. Alexa Spaanstra, soccer — The for- ward/midfielder from Brighton, Mich., received top female rookie honors at the Hoos Choice Awards May 1, after leading UVA in goals (nine), assists (six) and points (24). She was an All-ACC and All-Region selection, while also earning Best XI Team honors from Top Drawer Soccer. Spaanstra posted the game-winning goals against Syracuse and in the NCAA Tourna- ment opener against Monmouth, while four of her six assists came on game-winning goals. Grace Wallis, field hockey — The striker from Blue Bell, Pa., led the Cavaliers in points during her rookie campaign, with 13 on four goals and five assists. She ap- peared in all 19 games with nine starts and was named to the VaSID All-State second team. YEAR IN REVIEW 2018-19 DIRECTORS' CUP FINAL STANDINGS Rk. School Points 1. Stanford 1,567.75 2. Michigan 1,272.25 3. Florida 1,156.75 4. Texas 1,148.50 5. USC 1,075.75 6. UCLA 1,056.50 7. Florida State* 1,046.25 8. Virginia* 1,037.50 9. Duke* 1,001.00 10. North Carolina* 987.00 * ACC schools First-year forward/midfielder Alexa Spaanstra paced the women's soccer squad in goals (nine), assists (six) and points (24) in 2018. PHOTO COURTESY UVA UVA'S ACC COACHES OF THE YEAR Tony Bennett, men's basketball Andres Pedroso, men's tennis Lars Tiffany, men's lacrosse Bryan Fetzer, men's outdoor track & field