Virginia Cavaliers News

Roanoke Times — ReadIn here and here and here 4 decks.CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Anybody taking a look at Virginia's depleted 2008 football roster would have agreed that the Cavaliers had little margin for error. In that respect, it's a wonder the Cavaliers are even .500.

Roanoke Times — KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Virginia coach Debbie Ryan doesn't have many fond memories of Thompson-Boling Arena. That all changed Monday night when Monica Wright scored 35 points and Britnee Millner made a free throw with 6.4 seconds left to help No. 16 Virginia upset No. 5 Tennessee 83-82.

Roanoke Times — Freshman Sylven Landesberg nearly has a triple-double in his debut for Virginia.CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Three days earlier, VMI might have felt differently about a 10-point loss at Virginia. When you've opened the season with a victory over Kentucky at Rupp Arena, it creates a whole new set of standards.

Roanoke Times — Virginia's most experienced player is a proven scorer, but now his team also needs him to be a playmaker.One of the virtual certainties of Virginia's upcoming men's basketball season is that Mamadi Diane will go over the 1,000-point mark for his career, probably before the end of the calendar year. That would be a nice feat, accomplished by 41 players in UVa history, but not one that will result in Diane's jersey being hoisted to the rafters.

Roanoke Times — The preseason All-ACC pick is showing she also has leadership qualities.CHARLOTTESVILLE -- In her first two seasons, Monica Wright was already busy etching her name in Virginia women's basketball lore. She earned ACC Rookie of the Year honors in 2006-07, a second-team All-ACC pick last season and a preseason All-ACC pick this fall.

Roanoke Times — WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- If Virginia football coach Al Groh had a wish list going into the Cavaliers' game with Wake Forest, it would have included an uneventful afternoon in the kicking game. Two missed field goals had undermined Virginia in an overtime loss to Miami one week earlier, but nobody could blame a 28-17 loss to Wake Forest on new place-kicker Robert Randolph.

Roanoke Times — Troubled by both penalties and turnovers, UVa falls way behind and loses for the second straight time.WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Virginia liked BB&T Field a lot better when it was called Groves Stadium. Not that the name change had anything to do with it, but the Cavaliers certainly played as if they were confused in a 28-17 loss to Wake Forest.

Roanoke Times — The Cavs have owned Wake Forest at the Deacons' stadium, but haven't been to Winston-Salem since 2002.One of the understated consequences of ACC expansion is that a football team like Virginia can go six years without playing at Wake Forest. "This is an interesting match-up," said UVa coach Al Groh, whose Cavaliers are in Winston-Salem, N.C., for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff. "We played there in 2002 and haven't been back since. Now, we've played in '07 [at Virginia] and '08.

Roanoke Times — For all the gloom and doom that has been forecasted for the Virginia men's basketball team, chances are that the Cavaliers will have an opportunity to win a game on their final possession. For the last three years, the Cavaliers would have looked for Sean Singletary in that situation.

Roanoke Times — Chantel Jones made a 50-yard field goal, and she's got video evidence to boot.As Virginia marched up and down the field Saturday against Miami, there was more than one occasion when the Cavaliers could have used a 50-yard field goal. Unfortunately for them, there is only one UVa kicker known to have kicked a 50-yarder this season -- and she was sitting in the stands.

Roanoke Times — CHARLOTTESVILLE -- In 2007, Virginia might have been lost without Mikell Simpson to replace an injured Cedric Peerman at tailback. The Cavaliers no longer have Simpson as an insurance policy this year.