Last year the Commonwealth Clash finished in a tie. We won the competition based upon the total number of ACC championships. With the conclusion of the Winter season, we have a 3 point lead this year. There are 9 points available in the Spring and we need 4 of those points to win outright. This is how I see the Spring season shaping up in order of our likely success (rankings, where shown, come from different sources):

We should be strong favorites:
1) Women's T & F - based upon the results of the ACC meet on May 10-12. Looking at the results from last year and factoring in graduations and the results of the indoor season, we should win with room to spare.
2) Men's T&F - pretty much the same as Women's T & F. Last year only a DQ kept UVa from winning the meet and, therefore, the Commonwealth Clash. I don't think they will be as close this year and we should win comfortably.
3) Softball - based on a 3-game series April 6-8. We are mediocre but UVa is terrible. This is a crucial point since UVa should be favored in the remaining sports. One negative is the games are all away.

These next 4 should be similar in that UVa will be favored but a VT win is not out of reach:
4) Lacrosse - based upon April 21 match-up at home. They are currently ranked #8 and we are #18. They should be favored but a win is certainly possible as we continue to improve.
5) Women's Tennis - based upon April 7 match-up. They are ranked #24 and we are #36. They will be favored but a win at home is within reach.
6) Women's Golf - based on the ACC Tournament (April 20-22). The only rankings I can find have UVa at #25 and VT at #47. A win here would be a surprise but not shocking.
7) Men's Tennis - based upon April 22 match-up. Neither is ranked in the official rankings but Massey has UVa at #37 and us at #48. We will be the home team. UVa has one of their weakest teams in years but they still have individual players ranked higher than ours.

These last two are probably out of reach:
8) Baseball - based on an away series on April 6-8. You never know with our recent pitching success but they will be strong favorites.
9) Men's Golf - based on the ACC Tournament (April 20-22). They just beat us by 23 strokes in a tournament so a win here is highly unlikely.

So, if the favorites win all 9 points, the competition would once again end in a tie. The first tiebreaker is total ACC Championships in which both school compete. It is currently tied at one (Men's Basketball for them and Wrestling for us). I don't see another championship for them but I would not count out baseball and a longer shot at Men's Golf. We have a better shot at an additional championship with Men's Track & Field and an outside shot with Women's Track & Field. If things are still tied, the second tiebreaker are total ACC honor roll students in sports where both teams compete (all of our teams; UVa also has Rowing, Field Hockey and Men's Lacrosse). Since they aren't announced until the end of the year, there is no way to project this year's numbers. For what it's worth, we would have won this tiebreaker last year.

A big crowd at the pivotal lacrosse game might be the push we need to win the game and position us to win the Clash outright. Be there and Go Hokies!