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GETTING TO KNOW FOURTH-YEAR WOMEN'S SOCCER PLAYER ALEXIS SHAFFER CAVALIER SPORTS Alexis Shaffer's father, David, played in the NBA with the Portland Trail Blazers. Her grandfather, Lee Shaffer, was a basketball All-American at North Carolina and played in the NBA with the old Syracuse Nationals and the Philadelphia 76ers. Fortunately for Virginia, soccer was her sport of choice. Last season she was a second-team All-ACC midfielder, scored five game-winning goals and assisted on two more game winners. This year, she was a first-team pick, and earned ACC Of- fensive Player of the Year and Midfielder of the Year honors. Heading into the NCAA Tourna- ment, she had a team-leading 11 goals and six assists for a total of 28 points. My advice to student-athletes is: Time man- agement is huge. You have to balance your schoolwork because you are a student first and after you complete your academic require- ments for the day then you go to practice and have to give your best effort. You have to make sure you're on top of your schoolwork and whenever you get to the soccer part clear your mind of ev- erything you've done during the day so you can give 100 percent every day. The primary challenge facing stu- dent-athletes today is: You have to be able to manage two obstacles during the day which are school and soccer plus you don't get much free time on your hands. The best thing about UVA is: The environment including the people who attend the school and those who come to the athletic events and support us. Without them the experience would not be the same because their support is huge. The people at the univer- sity are amazing. Why I chose UVA: It's the best combination of athletics and academics. And the campus and location are absolutely beautiful. What I like the most about soccer: It's the people you get to meet and play with plus the experience on the field is incredible. It's some- thing you can't explain. The highlight of my athletic career: I've had the great opportunity of playing against teams across the country and playing for a champi- onship. We played in the NCAA championship and even though we lost it I wouldn't want to have played with any other women. You can't find any other team in the country where the women are so selfless. In high school it's more individual whereas in college it's 100 percent about the team and everybody playing a role whether it's on or off the field. The most important thing I've learned from soccer: It's to compete and give the best in everything you do. At the end of the day if you do you can say there isn't anything you would have changed. My dream vacation would be: Hawai'i. My post-college ambition is: After college my plan is to enter the National Women's Soccer League Draft. — Mike Scandura Shaffer was named the ACC Offensive Player of the Year and Midfielder of the Year. PHOTO BY MATT RILEY/COURTESY UVA HOO'S HOT Recognizing the "Who's Hoo" in UVA athletics — Cavalier student-athletes, past, present and future who are making news around the world of sports. Lachlan Cook ◆ Cross Country The Brisbane, Australia, product earned ACC Fresh- man of the Year honors after plac- ing 11th at the ACC C h a m p i o n - ships Oct. 28 in Cary, N.C., to lead all league rookies and earn All-ACC laurels. Cook 's finish was the second- best among Cavaliers — behind redshir t second-year Brent De - marest, who was seventh — and helped the team place second, earning UVA the men's cross coun- tr y point in the Commonwealth Clash by finishing higher than rival Virginia Tech. Caleigh Foust ◆ Field Hockey The fourth-year striker from Bryn M a w r, Pa . , w a s named the MVP of the 2016 ACC C h a m p i o n s h i p s while leading UVA to its first crown in program histor y. She tallied three goals in three games at the event, including the game- winners against Boston College and Wake Forest, the latter in overtime. Foust started 21 of the Cavaliers' 22 games heading into the NCAA Tour- nament, notched nine goals with five game-winners, and was selected to play in the NFHCA Division I Senior Game Nov. 19. Her 42 career goals are tied for 10th in school history. Brandon Guyer ◆ Baseball Alum After being traded to the Indians this summer, the 30-year- old out- fielder helped them reach the World Series, where they fell in seven games to the Cubs. In 38 games with the Tribe, he logged 81 at-bats, hit .333, scored 12 times and had seven extra-base hits with 14 RBI. Despite playing in just three post- season games leading up to the World Series, he was even better when it mattered most. Guyer, who had never played in the playoffs before, appeared in all seven games and notched three hits in 10 World Series at-bats with four runs scored and two RBI. Jimmy Stanger ◆ Golf A five-foot birdie putt on his fi- nal hole earned the fourth-year a share of medalist honors and helped the No. 7 Cavaliers earn a tie for first at the Golf Club of Georgia Collegiate Oct. 23. The team win marked UVA's third in four fall tournaments. The win capped a month that saw Stanger earn ACC Golf of the Month honors for October; he was also the team's top finisher (tied for fifth) in UVA's win at the Bank of Tennes- see Intercollegiate, where he shot a career-low 10-under 206. Golfstat ranks him No. 2 nationally. 6 ◆ CAVALIER CORNER WHAT/WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE … … TV show? "The Blacklist" … movie? "Bridesmaids" … actor and actress? Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Aniston … Charlottesville hangout/restaurant? Carter's Mountain … musician/band? Adele … pro sports team? Carolina Panthers … food? Chicken Parmesan … UVA class? Sports media and society … sport (other than soccer)? Baseball … Pre-game ritual? I chew Double Bubble bubble gum