It’s difficult to repeat as a champion in any sport. It’s even harder to three-peat, but that’s what Lars Tiffany and the Virginia men’s lacrosse team is setting out to do this season. The Cavaliers won the whole shebang in 2019, and — after an unexpected break in 2020 because of the pandemic — lifted the trophy again on Memorial Day in 2021.
Depending on who you ask, the three-peat has been successfully executed in men’s college lacrosse two or three times. Johns Hopkins (1978-80) accomplished the feat first. If you ask Syracuse fans, they’ll tell you the Orange did it 1998-90, but the NCAA vacated the 1990 win and would like it if we pretended it never happened. Princeton was the last team to win three straight NCAA tournaments, taking home the titles from 1996-98.
So can the Cavaliers follow in the footsteps of these legendary programs? Virginia enters the 2022 season atop the national polls and return a significant core from the team that won it all in 2021. Tiffany, now in his sixth season in Charlottesville, is cautiously optimistic and approaching the season more openly than he did after the 2019 title.
Heading into the 2020 season, Tiffany was emphatic that his team put the past behind them and not dwell on repeating or defending the title. Now, after the unexpected COVID disruptions and some conversations with well-known sport psychologist Dr. Bob Rotella, he’s changed his tune a little.
“We’re having a lot more fun with our recent history as opposed to, ‘don’t talk about it, deny it,'” Tiffany told media on Wednesday afternoon. “Instead, if we want to make reference to last year and what we did last year, let’s enjoy that and embrace it.”
Everyone will be gunning for the Hoos, so here’s why they have what it takes to join the elite three-peat company as their season kicks off Saturday against Air Force (1pm, ACC Network Extra).