Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, May 22, 1993 TAG: 9305220204
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Long
Pehlke can tell you it wasn't that easy.
There was never any doubt about his lacrosse ability, but when Pehlke arrived at UVa almost four years ago, it was with a kidney condition that had bothered him since youth and a reading disability that caused some to question whether he could do college work.
"Maybe they waited a little longer on me than they did with some other guys," said Pehlke of the school's admissions office, "but then I came in and made dean's list my first semester and proved to them I could do the work and be a regular student."
Pehlke's efforts did not go unrecognized by the school, which recently recognized him as its outstanding student-athlete.
"You definitely have to put in extra time," said Pehlke, who had nearly a 3.0 grade point average in high school. "I'm not the brightest student at this school, but I've made the effort. It's a matter of budgeting your time and taking courses in the off-season that set up your spring schedule."
Pehlke will have better than a 3.0 GPA when he graduates Sunday, but for now his attention is centered on another weekend engagement, Virginia's meeting with Johns Hopkins in the Division I lacrosse quarterfinals today at 2 p.m. in Baltimore.
It could be the last college game for Pehlke, a 5-foot-10, 165-pound attackman, who has shattered the UVa records for career goals (138) and points (237) but did not experience a playoff victory until fifth-ranked UVa routed Notre Dame 19-9 in the first round.
"People don't realize how much pressure there is on somebody on like me," said Pehlke, who has 34 goals this season - more than double the total for any other UVa player, "[but] there's always people who think you aren't doing enough."
Pehlke admittedly thought about transferring earlier in his career, but he never got to the point of choosing another school. He denied he ever thought about skipping his senior year, although his enthusiasm reached a low ebb after the Cavaliers went 7-5 in 1992.
"I don't think the whole team, in general, was into the season," said Pehlke, who scored a career-low 26 goals in 1992. "It was a wasted year for me, in particular. Dom [Starsia] coming in has given second wind to my lacrosse career."
Pehlke did not know and would not have recognized Starsia until the day he was named to succeed 64-year-old Jim Adams, who abruptly resigned after 15 years as UVa coach.
"Some of the underclassmen had gone into Coach Adams' office and talked to him [about] Virginia lacrosse possibly needing a new coach," Pehlke said. "He met with me [and the other co-captains] to see if it was true, to see if his time was up.
"He took it like a man and understood everything we were saying. Maybe the guys who went in there were a little harsh. A lot of people had a problem with that [approach]. I think something had to be done. That year reflected what this year would have been."
Starsia has been a motivator and a disciplinarian, as evidenced by his decision to suspend four players for the first-round playoff game. They had missed the athletic awards banquet at which Pehkle received his award.
"He's really got Virginia lacrosse back on track," Pehlke said. "He's demanding in a way the team needs. The attitude has changed dramatically. I think everyone is 95 percent on the same page."
It has helped Starsia that players like Pehlke have craved discipline.
"If you told them to walk down the field on their hands, Kevin would be the first in line," Starsia said.
Certainly, Virginia has never had a more productive offensive player. When Pehlke scored 44 goals in 1991, it broke the school record by seven goals. He is 22 goals and 28 points ahead of his closest challengers on UVa's career lists.
"I broke [the records] early enough in the season that it didn't have to be a grind," he said. "I've known what the records were since my freshman year, but I honestly never thought of myself as a goal-scorer until relatively late in my career."
Pehlke has never missed a game, although there was some question about his future when he experienced recurring kidney problems as a freshman. It stemmed from a kidney infection that led to mononucleosis and prevented him from playing sports in the seventh grade.
"The doctors said it might clear up as I got older and it did," Pehlke said. "It doesn't bother me anymore."
Pehlke recently was named All-ACC for the third time in four years, but he has only made All-American once, when he was a second-team selection as a sophomore.
"People are always putting Virginia lacrosse down or putting Kevin Pehlke down because he hasn't been a first-team All-American," he said. "I'm sure there are a lot of people who would love to be in my shoes."
by CNB