There are at least two things to take away from No. 5 Virginia’s 13-12 win over No. 20 Louisville on Saturday, perhaps both of equal importance.

First off, the Cavaliers are indeed worthy of their top-5 ranking. They continue to show resolve in close games, and the team’s offense contains more options than most. Defensively, UVA is sound.

Secondly, Louisville might finally be beginning to hit its stride. Even in a loss, Scott Teeter’s Cardinals showed the ability to take a punch and bounce back. After a few down years in the cellar of the ACC, Louisville might be very close to turning things around.

Virginia (4-0) went into halftime on a four-goal run, putting Julie Myers’ team ahead 8-4. The defense was outstanding during that stretch, holding Louisville (2-2) scoreless for 15-plus minutes to end the half.

Mackenzie Hoeg fed Ashlyn McGovern to make it 11-7 in favor of Virginia with 19:58 remaining, and that’s when Louisville’s offense came alive.

Three unassisted goals in a span of 1:47 — two by Alex McNicholas and another by Caroline Blalock — cut the deficit to 11-10. After Annie Dyson found Lillie Kloak to push Virginia’s lead back to two goals at 12-10, Louisville tied the score at 12 on goals from Blalock and Hannah Morris.

An ACC battle going down to the wire. @LouisvilleLax cuts the @UVAWomensLax lead to one late in the second half. pic.twitter.com/kQEIRS9KWs

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) March 6, 2021

Virginia’s defense again locked it down. The Cavaliers held Louisville scoreless for the rest of the game, allowing Morgan Schwab’s feed to Maggie Bostain with 5:46 remaining to serve as the game-winning goal.

Virginia Survives

Maggie Boston gets the game-winner as @UVAWomensLax wins 13-12 despite a @LouisvilleLax comeback. pic.twitter.com/z3vknJaZqA

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) March 6, 2021

Morris scored four times for Louisville, and Blalock led the team with five points. Bostain and Taylor Regan each posted four points for the Hoos, and Virginia utilized eight different scorers in the win. Virginia thoroughly dominated the ground-ball battle, holding a 23-12 advantage.

Syracuse Looks Just Fine Without Hawryschuk

For the second straight game, No. 2 Syracuse proved that while it would certainly love to have Emily Hawryschuk on the field, its offense will be just fine without the Tewaaraton Award candidate.

The Orange improved to 3-0 — with each win coming against a top-10 opponent — with a 15-5 win over No. 8 Duke down in North Carolina. In a game that was never close, Meaghan Tyrrell (five goals, one assist) and freshman Emma Ward (four goals, one assist) led the way.

EMMA WARD TAKE A BOW

The @CuseWLAX freshman goes BTB for the goal against @DukeWLAX.

She finished with her first goals of her career in the win. pic.twitter.com/8Hx6N1uGHe

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) March 6, 2021

Asa Goldstock was electric again, making 12 saves and allowing just four goals in 38:56 of work before yielding to Hannah Van Middelem. The Syracuse defense again kept a stellar offense in check, holding Duke (4-2) to just 20 shots.

Florida Thumps Stetson

The Gators were back in action this week after health and safety protocols saw Florida shut things down after its loss to UNC on Feb. 19. The Gators came back to crush Kennesaw State on Wednesday, then they put together a similar performance Saturday against Stetson.

No. 6 Florida, which led by 10 at halftime, got five goals from Shannon Kavanagh and a hat trick from freshman Ashley Gonzalez in a 19-7 win. Florida (3-1) outshot Stetson 32-15.

Notre Dame Comes Out Firing

Notre Dame experienced a lengthy pause after its Feb. 13 win over Vanderbilt, but the Irish returned to action Saturday and didn’t skip a beat. Maddie Howe and Samantha Lynch score four goals each, and Jessi Masinko had one goal and three assists as No. 3 Notre Dame (2-0) topped Robert Morris 16-2.

Andie Aldave, who was back in action after suffering a leg injury that required her to miss the second half of the first game, recorded seven draw controls.

Loyola Offense Drops 21 on American

No. 15 Loyola evened its record at 2-2 with a 21-4 win over American, one of last season’s feel-good stories that has thus far started slowly out of the gate.

Livy Rosenzweig led the charge with four goals and three assists, while Sam Fiedler and Emily Willis both recorded a hat trick. Loyola held a 19-8 advantage on the draw and outshot American 32-14.

NIKE/US Lacrosse Top 20

No. 1 North Carolina 21, No. 11 Boston College 9 — Read the full recap here.
No. 2 Syracuse 15, No. 8 Duke 5
No. 3 Notre Dame 16, Robert Morris 2
No. 6 Florida 19, Stetson 7
No. 5 Virginia 13, No. 20 Louisville 12
No. 15 Loyola 21, American 4

No. 17 Virginia Tech at No. 2 Notre Dame, PPD

OTHER SCORES

Albany 13, New Hampshire 12
Binghamton 11, UMass Lowell 8
Fairfield 13, Quinnipiac 10
George Mason 11, Radford 10
George Washington 16, Old Dominion 6
Holy Cross 12, Lafayette 9
Jacksonville 12, East Carolina 9
Kennesaw State 15, Winthrop 14
Lehigh 9, La Salle 6
Long Island U. 12, Sacred Heart 8
Merrimack 14, Saint Francis 10
Siena 6, Canisius 5 (2OT)
Wagner 15, Central Connecticut 3
William and Mary 22, Longwood 16

Manhattan at Marist, 7 p.m. Eastern

Army at Colgate, PPD
Bryant at Mount St. Mary’s, PPD