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B Lelan Bailey Has Made Her Mark In Her Two Years At UVa By Whitelaw Reid efore every game, fourth-year defender Lelan Bailey tries to fire up the Virginia women's lacrosse team by reading a poem that she has written. "She's such a great leader," head coach Julie Myers said. "She's inspiring." Teammates said Bailey's attitude is infectious. "She really brings a positiveness to practice — day in, day out," fourth-year defender Megan Dunleavy said. This season, Bailey was a key factor in UVa qualifying for the NCAA Tournament for the 18th straight year. In a do-or-die game against Duke in the ACC Tournament April 25, Bailey — a transfer from the University of Florida — had a career-high six draw controls and helped lead the Cavaliers to a 10-7 victory. Through April, the senior defender from Millersville, Md., had 21 draw controls, which ranked fourth on the team. "She's probably the skinniest kid up on the draw controls, but she comes up with draw control after draw control," Myers marveled. "She's one of the more deceiving players. She's always willing to dive for a ball or throw her heart out there to make a play." Fittingly, Bailey is named after somebody who's known for his grit. Bailey's parents, Randall and Michelle, are Pennsylvania natives — and big fans of Pittsburgh's sports teams. At the time their daughter was born, current Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland was managing the Pittsburgh Pirates. Both Bailey's parents were athletes. Her father ran cross country at the University of Pittsburgh, while her mother had been a field hockey player. Bailey played field hockey, lacrosse and swam in high school. "I thought I was going to play field hockey in college," Bailey said, "but then I developed more love for lacrosse." Funny enough, Bailey was recruited by Florida, Penn State and Vanderbilt, but not Virginia. In the end, she elected to become a Gator. However, after two years in Gainesville, Bailey decided she needed a change. "I loved Florida and I loved my teammates so much," she said, "but it just wasn't the place for me." Enter Virginia. Bailey had been a high school teammate of former UVa star Julie Gardner at Severna Park High School in Maryland. Gardner, who was heading into her final year as a Cavalier, recommended Bailey to Myers. "She said, 'I've got a great friend. She's awesome. If you get a chance to meet her, you would really like her,'" Myers recalled.