he discipline, talent, and determination of Virginia athletes were evident in sports programs across the board in 2004�05. Their success propelled the University to thirteenth place in the Division I United States Sports Academy Directors� Cup standings, based on the combined performance of the men�s and women�s teams. U.Va. has  finished in the top thirty every year in the twelve-year history of the Directors� Cup.

Winning 63.3 percent (274-158-3) of its contests in 2004�05, the University also captured the Virginia Sports Information Directors Association�s Division I all-sport championship. It was the second consecutive year the University had won the title and the ninth time overall. Among Division I schools in Virginia, the Cavaliers 

posted the highest winning percentage in men�s competitions and the second highest in women�s sports.

In several sports, Virginia dominated the newly expanded Atlantic Coast Conference. The women�s rowing and soccer teams and the men�s soccer, tennis, and swimming and diving teams all won ACC championships, bringing to eleven the number of conference titles secured by Virginia athletes in the last two years. It was a school-record seventh consecutive conference championship for men�s swimming and diving, a sixth consecutive title for women�s rowing, a second consecutive championship for men�s soccer and men�s tennis, and a first-ever ACC championship for women�s soccer.

The women�s rowing team went on to finish second as a team in the NCAA championships, while two Virginia boats, the second varsity eight and the varsity four, finished first. The women�s lacrosse team finished second in the NCAA Tournament, while the men�s lacrosse team reached the semifinals.

Coach Al Groh and the Cavalier football team compiled an 8-4 record, finishing in a tie for third place in the ACC and a final ranking of twenty-third in the Associated Press poll. The season concluded with an appearance in the MPC Computers Bowl in Boise, Idaho, where the Cavaliers narrowly fell to Fresno State in overtime. Tight end Heath Miller and offensive guard Elton Brown became the first Virginia football teammates to be named consensus first-team All-Americans in the same year.

The People behind the Numbers

Heath Miller and lacrosse player Amy Appelt were honored as the University�s top male and female athletes for 

the 2004�05 academic year. Their accomplishments epitomize the quality and character of Virginia�s sports programs.

A three-year starter, Miller rewrote the Virginia and ACC record books for a tight end, setting new career marks for most receptions (144), yards (1,703), and touchdowns (twenty). Overall he finished second in Virginia football history in receptions, tied for fourth in touchdown receptions, and seventh in yards receiving. Miller was a unanimous All-America selection and received the Mackey Award as the best tight end in the nation in 2004. He was the University�s first unanimous All-American in football since Jim Dombrowski in 1984, and he earned first-team All-ACC honors twice. Miller was chosen by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft.

Appelt�s career record includes 250 goals, 110 assists, and 360 points. Her totals for goals and points rank first in Virginia women�s lacrosse history, and her career point total places her fifth in Division I women�s lacrosse history. In the spring of 2005, Appelt earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference and All-ACC Tournament honors. She won the Tewaaraton Trophy the previous year and is a three-time All-America and All-ACC selection. She is also a member of the U.S. National Team.

Outstanding Leaders at the Helm

The job of harnessing such extraordinary talent falls to our coaches, who were widely recognized for their success in 2004�05. Three Virginia mentors won ACC Coach of the Year honors: Mark Bernardino (men�s swimming and diving), Brian Boland (men�s tennis), and Jan Mann (women�s golf). During his quarter-century at the helm of the U.Va. swimming and diving program, Bernardino and his teams have won nine men�s titles and five women�s titles, twice the total of his nearest competitor in the ACC. Coach Debbie Ryan, the mainstay of the women�s basketball program, chalked up her 600th career victory this past year. Coach Ryan�s teams have won at least twenty games in nineteen of her twenty-eight seasons at U.Va.

This tradition of achievement promises to be carried on by new members of the coaching lineup. Dave Leitao, the new men�s head basketball coach, comes to Virginia from DePaul University. The first African-American head coach in any intercollegiate sport at U.Va., he compiled an overall record of 58-34 and participated in a postseason tournament in each of his three years as head coach at DePaul. Also joining U.Va. this year is Karen Johns, who will head the softball program. In five seasons at the University of Florida, Coach Johns posted a 192-131 record and led the Gators to four NCAA appearances. A third new head coach is Mark Guilbeau in women�s tennis. In each of his nine years as head women�s tennis coach at the University of Kentucky, his teams competed in the NCAA tournament. He was named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association�s National Coach of the Year in 2005 when he led Kentucky to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament, a 26-6 overall record, and a No. 4 national ranking.

Winning in the Classroom

In 2004�05, a total of 232 U.Va. students were on the ACC Academic Honor Roll, which comprises varsity athletes who earned a grade point average of 3.0 or better for the full academic year. The graduation rate for Virginia athletes, 83 percent, is the second highest in the ACC.

building for our future   COMPLETED THIS YEAR Newsweek magazine has declared U.Va. the nation�s "hottest" school for fitness, in part due to its first-rate recreational facilities. Among them is Carr�s Hill Field, home to many intense but muddy intramural games. Thanks to a $1 million makeover, the field has been resurfaced with artificial turf, under which is a base of crushed stone, sand, and recycled rubber to improve drainage. Underground pipes carry rainwater to nearby Meadow Creek. The field�s frequent users include the new Cavalier Marching Band, which practices there three days a week. UNDER CONSTRUCTION The $130 million John Paul Jones Arena is on schedule for completion in May 2006. The 15,000-seat facility will provide a new and much-improved home for Virginia basketball and will host a variety of public events, including concerts and convocations. The project also includes a parking garage, practice and training facilities for both the men�s and women�s basketball teams, a dining area for student-athletes, and a new road connecting the arena to the U.S. 29/U.S. 250 Bypass to help improve traffic flow.