Virginia places four on the 2021 Men’s Lacrosse All-ACC team

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Virginia placed four student-athletes on the 2021 men’s lacrosse All-ACC team: longstick midfielder Jared Conners, faceoff midfielder Petey LaSalla, attackman Matt Moore and midfielder Connor Shellenberger.

It is the second All-ACC team in a row where UVA had four honorees. With no team announced in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, UVA also put four on the 2019 All-ACC team. Prior to 2019, it was the 2009 season the last time UVA put four Cavaliers on the All-ACC team.

The team is determined by a vote of the league’s five head coaches. The accolade is the second career nod for Moore, who was named the ACC Freshman of the Year in 2018 and made the All-ACC team in 2019. The honors for Conners, LaSalla and Shellenberger are the first of their careers. Shellenberger is one of two freshmen on the All-ACC team.

Conners (Sr., Pittsford, N.Y.) leads the nation’s LSMs and defensemen with 70 ground balls, which ranks No. 19 overall. He is No. 3 in the ACC and No. 16 in the nation with 19 caused turnovers. A scoring threat, Conners has two goals and five assists on the season. Conners has 18 career goals and 14 career assists for 32 points, which is top in program history for a pole.

LaSalla (Jr., Miller Place, N.Y.) is No. 2 in the nation with 221 faceoff wins and his 64.1 percent faceoff winning mark ranks No. 7 in the country. He is No. 7 in the nation with 110 ground balls and his 221 faceoff wins in 2021 rank No. 2 all-time on UVA’s single-season ledger. He needs 22 to break Justin Schwenk’s 2018 record of 242. Dangerous off the draw, LaSalla also has seven goals and six assists for 13 points.

Moore (Sr., Garnet Valley, Pa.) is No. 2 on the team with 54 points and 29 assists. He is No. 5 in the ACC and No. 20 in the nation with 20 points. He is No. 5 in the ACC and No. 12 in the nation with 29 assists. Earlier this season he became the fifth Cavalier in program history to reach 100+ career goals and 100+ career assists. He has at least one point in 46-straight games.

Shellenberger (R-Fr., Charlottesville, Va.) leads the nation’s freshmen with 55 points, which ranks No. 16 overall and is the most on the team. He has dished out at least two assists in 11 of UVA’s 14 games and is tied for No. 9 in the nation with 32 assists. He joins Moore as the only Cavaliers to record at least one point in all 14 games this season.

Virginia returns to action on Sunday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. UVA is the No. 4 national seed and hosts Bryant at 12 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU.