The Lars Tiffany era at Virginia began on Feb. 11 of last year when the young Cavaliers and Tiffany’s and offensive coordinator Sean Kirwan’s revamped group escaped with a 16-15 win over the Loyola Greyhounds at Ridley Athletic Complex.

It was a promising start for a program that looked like it was headed for an NCAA tournament berth. However, in a season of ups and downs, the Cavaliers finished 8-7 overall and winless in the ACC — albeit four losses came by one goal.

The season may not have gone exactly how Tiffany and his team had hoped, but it was just the beginning. The Cavaliers, as expected, finished third in the nation in goals scored (14.40) and assists per game (9.13), while leading the nation in ground balls per game 43.33.

NO. 16 VIRGINIA AT NO. 11 LOYOLA 
WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 10, 1 p.m. 
WATCH: ACC Network Extra/WatchESPN

Other than star Zedd Williams and defenseman Tanner Scales, the core of this Virginia team returns, with Michael Kraus, Mike D’Amario, Dox Aitken and Ryan Conrad back for 2018. 

Tiffany knows his team needs to improve on defense and at the faceoff X, and the Cavaliers will have a chance to see how far they’ve come this weekend.

The second year or the Lars Tiffany regime at Virginia starts Saturday, when his team hosts Loyola in a rematch of the thriller last year. With Pat Spencer entering his junior year and a rope unit already getting national acclaim, the Greyhounds will present a good measuring stick for where this Cavaliers team is in its progression.

And with the ACC as strong as it is, Virginia knows that it can’t waste an opportunity to pick up a solid nonconference win. Virginia and Loyola will meet almost one year to the day they battled at Ridley, only this time Tiffany’s team has a year under its belt.

Other games highlighting the weekend include:

• No. 20 Towson at No. 12 Johns Hopkins
  Saturday, 6 p.m., ESPNU
  
  A Towson team that made its first final four since 2001 last spring will test its ability to reload when it battles crosstown rival Johns Hopkins. The Blue Jays welcome back Shack Stanwick and Joel Tinney from the 2017 squad, which fell to the Tigers 13-8 at Johnny Unitas Stadium last season.

• Jacksonville at No. 1 Duke
  Saturday, 1 p.m., ACC Network Extra
  
  This matchup may not be intriguing the way that No. 1 Duke is playing — with two straight blowouts to start the season and Justin Guterding dropping 18 points combined. However, John Galloway’s Jacksonville team shocked Navy to start the season and allowed just seven goals. Could this game be closer than anticipated?

• Navy at No. 2 Maryland
  Saturday, Noon, BTN Plus
  
  The defending national champs begin their season with an in-state battle with a struggling Navy team. After last week’s upset at the hands of Jacksonville, the Midshipmen will have to prove they can compete with the top teams in the country. For the Terps, it’s a chance to see a few new faces playing bigger roles, like Jared Bernhardt and freshman Bubba Fairman.

More Games On Our Radar

All times are listed in ET. For a full list of broadcast games, please visit our US Lacrosse TV listing page, presented by Nationwide.

SATURDAY, FEB. 10

12 p.m.
UMass at No. 15 Army (Patriot League Network)
Boston U at No. 7 Ohio State

1 p.m. 
Mount St. Mary's at Delaware (BlueHens.com)
Cleveland State at Michigan
Hobart at No. 17 Penn State
St. John's at No. 8 Rutgers (BTN Plus)
Binghamton at No. 10 Syracuse (ACC Network Extra)

3 p.m.
No. 3 Denver at Air Force (GoAirForceFalcons.com)

SUNDAY, FEB. 11

1 p.m.
Detroit Mercy at No. 6 Notre Dame (ACC Network Extra)