UVA Alumni and Hall of Fame Inductee, Tony Meola to play in Cinco De Jimi Cup

EL JIMADOR ANNOUNCES THE ‘DREAM TEAM’ ROSTER

FOR THE FIRST CINCO DE JIMI CUP

Lucky 10 will participate in the ultimate soccer experience as they play alongside their favorite players

LOUISVILLE, KY. (June 6, 2012) – el Jimador, 100 percent blue agave tequila, today announced the soccer legends from the U.S. and Mexican National teams and the 10 contest winners who will participate in the inaugural “Cinco de Jimi Cup” on July 10, 2012 at Casa Herradura’s Hacienda San José del Refugio in Amatitan, Jalisco. Part of el Jimador’s commitment to create once in a lifetime experiences for soccer fans, the Cinco de Jimi Cup is a friendly soccer game between former players from the U.S. and Mexican National teams.

A record-breaking number of adults 21 and older participated in the “What’s Your 100%” contest through el Jimador’s Facebook tab at www.Facebook.com/elJimador, by creating a list of characteristics that define them in percentages, adding up to 100 in alignment with the brand’s 100% blue agave attribute. Shane Evans of Goal.com, The Original Winger founder Benjamin Hooper, and two el Jimador executives, reviewed the entries and selected 10 winners based on originality, personality and use of the el Jimador brand.

The player roster for the “Cinco de Jimi Cup” includes:

U.S. National Team

·         Alexi Lalas (captain): el Jimador brand ambassador, National Soccer Hall of Famer and ex defender of the U.S. National team

·         Cobi Jones: National Soccer Hall of Famer and All-time leader in caps with U.S. Men's National Team

·         Tony Meola: recently named National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee and former goal keeper of the U.S. National team

Mexican National Team

·         Luis Roberto ‘Zague’ Alves (captain): former striker of the Mexican National Team and record- holding CONCACAF top scorer

·         Jorge Campos: former goal keeper and striker of the Mexican National team

·         Luis ‘El Matador’ Hernandez: former striker that holds the record for the Mexican National Team as the top scorer in the World Cup

The following ten lucky contest winners will be divided between both teams to play alongside and against their soccer idols:

• Cassandra Byerly (Green Bay, WI)
• Maria Cisneros (Millville, NJ)
• Walker Corl (Kannapolis, NC)
• Adam Gonzales (Bronx, NY)
• Sheridan Hurd (Tigard, OR)
• Baldo Romnel Ibarra (Denver, CO)
• Lucas Perry (Portland, ME)
• Anthony Rossi (Salt Lake City, UT)
• Edith Rodiguez Salazar (Crystal Lake, IL)
• Jacob Szopinski (Buffalo, NY)
  
  

“Ten soccer fans will have the chance to play with soccer legends that are true artists with the soccer ball and embark on the first of once-in-a-lifetime soccer experiences organized by el Jimador,” said Jesus Ostos, Brown-Forman tequilas brand marketing group manager. “Just like soccer is more than a game for passionate soccer fans, handcrafting tequila is a way of life and truly an art form for el Jimador.” 

In addition to participation in the match alongside soccer legends, the contest prize also includes round-trip airfare, hotel accommodations, and local transportation for all winners and a guest.

Three UVA Men's Soccer players selected to All-ACC Academic Team

UVA Soccer Press Release:
Virginia's Dimas, Monaco, Zinkhan Named to All-ACC Academic Team

Student-athletes must earn 3.0 GPA to be eligible

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Virginia's Ari Dimas (Jr., Chesapeake, Va.), Greg Monaco (Sr., Virginia Beach, Va.) and Ryan Zinkhan (Fr., Fredericksburg, Va.) have been named to the 2011 All-ACC Academic Men's Soccer Team, which was announced today by ACC Commissioner John Swofford.
All three were named to the all-academic team for the first time.

Dimas started 15 games in 2011, playing the full match 11 times while serving as the anchor to the Cavaliers' midfield. Dimas scored a goal and added an assist in 2011. He also was named to the Hokie Invitational All-Tournament team on Sept. 4.

A two-time team captain, Monaco concluded his Cavalier career in 2011. He started 16 of the Cavaliers' 21 games at defense. Monaco assisted on Brian Span's game-winning golden goal late in UVa's win over Wake Forest in the ACC Tournament on Nov. 8. He finished his UVa career with 61 starts, including all 25 matches in UVa's national championship season in 2009.

Zinkhan was an ACC All-Freshman Team honoree this season. He played in all 21 matches, starting 17. Zinkhan was UVa's freshman leader in points with 11 and was fourth on the team in goals (4) and assists (3). He was a jack-of-all-trades for Virginia, spending time at forward, midfield and defense.

To be eligible for All-ACC Academic Team consideration, a student-athlete must have earned a 3.00 grade point average for the previous semester and maintained a 3.00 cumulative average during his academic career.

Virginia has three selected to All-ACC Men's Soccer Team

The All-ACC Men's Soccer Team and 2011 ACC All-Freshmen Men’s Soccer Team have been announced and the University of Virginia is well represented.

Junior forward Will Bates is the lone Virginia player named to the All-ACC First Team. The All-ACC Second Team includes Bates' teammates Brian Ownby and Brian Span.

Rounding out the Cavaliers to be recognized by the ACC is Freshman forward Ryan Zinkhan.

Up next for Virginia  (12-6-1) is a match against top-seeded North Carolina (15-2-2) in the semifinals of the ACC Men's Soccer Championship at 5:30 p.m. Friday at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C. The game will be live on ESPN3.

UVA Men's Soccer look to return to winning ways with Howard match at 7 p.m. Tuesday

The no. 25 ranked (NSCAA) Virginia men's team will be looking to rebound following their loss to Wake Forest last game:

UVA vs. Wake Forest | Video Highlights

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The Virginia men's soccer team will take on Howard at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Klöckner Stadium in Charlottesville. Live statistics will be available at VirginiaSports.com.
Virginia is 8-5-0 this season following a tough 4-3 ACC loss at Wake Forest last Friday. Will Bates (Jr., Chester, Va.) recorded a hat trick and now has 13 goals this season - second in the ACC and fifth most in Division I soccer.

UVa fell behind 3-0 early in the second half before Bates scored two goals just 29 seconds apart to pull the Cavaliers back into the game. The Demon Deacons scored in the 87th minute, which proved key when Bates later tallied his third goal with just six seconds remaining.

With 13 goals this season, Will Bates has the most goals in a year by a UVa player since Yannick Reyering tallied 13 in 2007. With 30 points in 2011, Bates has the most points by a Cavalier since Reyering posted 32 in 2006.

Howard is 2-8-2 this season following a 2-0 loss at Adelphi on Saturday. The Bison defeated Virginia Tech, 2-1, in the season opener.

Virginia owns the series lead with a 2-1-0 advantage, dating back to 1988. The two sides last met in 2009, a 2-0 Virginia home win. Bates scored a goal and added an assist in the 2009 contest, while Tony Tchani also recorded a goal for the Cavaliers.

Virginia returns to ACC play at 7 p.m. Friday when it travels to Virginia Tech.

Virginia men destroy Richmond 7-1

The University of Virginia left no doubt who the number one mens team in the state is on Monday night.

The No. 11 Virginia men's soccer team scored four goals in a nine-minute span in the first half to break open a scoreless match and roll to a 7-1 win over Richmond Monday evening in front of 1,786 spectators in the home opener at Klöckner Stadium. UVa also scored three goals in a 12-minute period of the second half.

"We played well tonight and were probably a little wounded after our last game (against West Virginia)," Virginia head coach George Gelnovatch said. "Give Richmond and coach Clint Peay credit. They played very hard."

Virginia men vs. Richmond: Highlights

Will Bates scored a pair of goals and dished out two assists for Virginia (1-1-0) as he tied a career high with his six-point effort. UVa received goals from six others in rolling to the win.

True freshman Spencer LaCivita earned his first career win in goal after stopping four shots. Richmond goalkeeper Thomas Hand made eight saves. LaCivita was one of five UVa freshmen in the starting lineup and one of 11 who saw 10 or minutes of action Monday.

Virginia held a dominating 28-8 edge in shots, including a 16-5 advantage in shots on goal. Both teams attempted five corner kicks.

The teams played 27 scoreless minutes before the Cavaliers broke loose for four goals in a wild nine-minute span. Brian Span started the scoring after a great cross into the box from Bates and finished by ripping it past Hand. Just over four minutes later, Ari Dimas cranked from 25 yards out and perfectly placed it in the far left corner to push the lead to 2-0.

UVa scored 53 seconds later, as Bates lofted a cross across the box to freshman Chris Somerville, who powered home his shot from six yards out for his first career goal. Richmond (0-1-0) answered just 43 seconds later as Timmy Albright headed in a corner kick from Spencer Schiff, but UVa quickly quashed the UR momentum with another goal just over two minutes later. After Bates was pulled down in the box in the 36th minute, he was awarded a penalty kick and calmly finished it to push the UVa lead to 4-1.

UVa went 20 minutes without a goal in the second half before scoring three times in just under 12 minutes. After a great lead pass from Dimas, Bates broke away and dribbled around the goalkeeper before tapping in his second goal of the evening in the 66th minute. After a host of substitutions, the Cavalier reserves got into the act as freshman Kyle McCord, on his first career shot, slipped a goal just inside the right post off an assist from fellow rookie Calvin Rezende.

UVa concluded its scoring onslaught in the 78th minute when McCord crossed to Felipe Libreros, who touched it past Hand for the goal.

Virginia will compete in the Hilton Garden Hokie Invitational this weekend in Blacksburg. UVa will battle Cincinnati at 5 p.m. Friday before matching up with Wisconsin at noon Sunday.