The No. 4 Virginia women's soccer team looks for their eighth straight win tonight against the James Madison Bulldogs when the two squads face off in Harrisonburg, Va.
After squeaking out a late, one-goal victory over Florida State this past weekend, the Cavaliers are confident heading into their non-conference game.
"I think if you can come back against a team like Florida State, it's going to give you confidence," coach Steve Swanson said.
He also said, however, that in-state rivals always pose a serious threat. "It's one of those games where you can throw the records right out the window," Swanson said.
Virginia stands at 9-1-1 after the weekend, while JMU has struggled to a record of 3-7-1. When the two schools faced off last year in Charlottesville, JMU gave up seven goals en route to a 7-3 loss. Today, the Bulldogs defend their own turf where they are 2-3-1 this year: a noticeably better record than their overall record shows.
James Madison fields a young team, which has had some trouble putting balls into the net this season. The Bulldogs' sophomore forward Kim Argy leads the team with 10 points, but could have trouble against a Virginia defense that has managed to hold opponents to one goal or less with the sole exception of Saturday's 3-2 win over the Seminoles.
Cavalier sophomore midfielder Kelly Hammond and freshman forward Ariel Thompson lead the Cavalier offense, together accounting for the three goals that sealed the victory over Florida State.
Thompson knows that the Cavaliers' success will give teams a reason to gun for them.
"We're confident, but we also realize that teams are out there to get us," Thompson said. "We're the one that they're chasing after."
Virginia passed Texas A&M to take over sole position of the No. 4 spot in the nation after their win last weekend. Hammond leads the team in points with 22 and looks to add to her total against a defense that gives up almost three goals per game.
"They're in-state rivals," Hammond said. "They're a very competitive team and they'll come out hard from the start."
She will be joined in the midfield by sophomore Noelle Keselica, who leads the team in assists with six.
The two teams have shared three common opponents this year in Maryland, West Virginia and William & Mary. Virginia has gone 3-0 against these three teams, while JMU has struggled to a record of 0-2-1. Virginia outscored these opponents 5-2 in total, while the three outscored JMU 9-2.
If the Cavaliers are able to get past their in-state foes, they face a tough schedule of in-conference games over the next three weeks which conclude at home against No. 1 UNC-Chapel Hill. However, coach Steve Swanson knows that the team must take things one game at a time.
"We'll have to be ready to play," Hammond said. "We've done some good things against them recently, but notoriously they've given us trouble."
Read More
You cannot say money is the problem for Virginia football
By Peter Kriebel | 40 minutes agoMoney, after all, is just one aspect of a winning program.
West Coast woes strike again as men’s basketball gets hammered by Stanford
By Emory Huffman | 12 hours agoVirginia, once again in a lost season, looked aimless on the floor.
ISTVAN: Tony Bennett left Virginia in a hole
By Ben Istvan | 20 hours agoHis decision to retire doomed this men's basketball season.
