by CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia men’s lacrosse player Zed Williams (Seneca Nation) was named ACC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, as announced by the Atlantic Coast Conference for games played through March 12.
Williams (Sr., Irving, N.Y.) scored the game-winning goal in overtime against Cornell in the Pacific Coast Shootout, a neutral site game in Costa Mesa, Calif., on Saturday. Williams helped UVA overcome a 6-0 deficit to start the game as the Cavaliers scored 15 goals in the second half. He scored his first three goals of the game in the fourth quarter, with his first giving UVA a 15-14 lead with 9:05 left in regulation. His second goal started a 3-0 UVA run with 2:20 left and the Cavaliers trailing by two, 17-15. He capped that same 3-0 run with 14 seconds left in regulation with a man-up goal, giving UVA the 18-17 lead. After Cornell tied the game on the ensuing faceoff, Williams stuck the game-winning goal from roughly 20 yards out after 79 seconds played in the overtime period. Williams’ two assists came in the third quarter in the midst of a 7-0 run that gave UVA its first lead of the game, 13-11. He assisted the goal that tied the game at 11-11 and the one that capped the 7-0 run, giving UVA the 13-11 advantage.
It is the second career honor for Williams and second this season. He was named ACC Offensive Player of the Week on February 27. UVA has earned four ACC Offensive Player of the Week honors in 2017. In addition to Williams first honor of the year, Dox Aitken earned the honor on Feb. 13 and Mike D’Amario was awarded the accolade on Feb. 20 for his seven-goal performance against Drexel.
Virginia returns to action on Saturday night when No. 3 Notre Dame comes to Charlottesville for ACC play. The game is set to faceoff at 6 p.m. and will be televised on ESPNU.
