Any college athlete will say it's easier and more fun to play at home. Players are able to sleep in their own beds, eat the food they normally eat and take advantage of a favorable crowd. The No. 12 Virginia men's soccer team is certainly no exception.
Last season amid a sub-par 11-10-2 campaign, the Cavaliers failed to win a single conference road game. Finishing with a .500 ACC record, the team earned home wins against powerhouses such as Wake Forest and North Carolina while failing on the road against unranked teams including Duke and N.C. State. Whether it was Virginia's overall inexperience or a lack of motivation that led to past troubles on the road, this year's seniors are confident that the team's away performances must improve for the Cavaliers (5-1) to succeed.
"The twelfth man on the field is the crowd," senior defender Matt Oliver said. "Being comfortable at home and on your field [makes it hard to play away]."
Despite Virginia's struggles last season on the road, the team got this season's ACC schedule off on the right foot last weekend with a big 2-1 win against then-No. 2 Wake Forest in Winston-Salem. With the victory, the Cavaliers improved to 4-1 on the season and maybe more importantly, 1-0 in the conference.
"I think last weekend we proved to ourselves that we could play almost anywhere," Oliver said. "It was terrible weather and we were in a hostile environment. But we came from behind to pull that one off."
Interestingly, it was freshman Matt Ayote who propelled the Cavaliers to victory over the Demon Deacons with a late second-half shot past the Wake goalkeeper. Ayote is one of 11 Cavalier freshmen who were not around for last season's road woes. Based on Ayote's performance against Wake, maybe their ignorance is exactly what the Cavaliers need.
Virginia "didn't start off well last season," Ayote said. "This year we're doing great and if we win this weekend we're going to do even better."
Sunday's game pits Virginia against perennial rival North Carolina. Probably better known for their women's soccer team, UNC was ranked as high as No. 3 in the country just a year ago. But this season, the Tar Heels have gotten off to a rocky 1-3-2 start.
Sunday's game is "big, real big," Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said. "As a coach you try to push all the right buttons to motivate players. But for ACC games [the players] are ready and juiced up. Usually the day after a game is a little bit lighter, but I told them on Wednesday that it's back to work and we are going full tilt getting ready for Carolina."
Despite Virginia's rejuvenated confidence in its ability to win on the road, the Cavaliers will have their hands full with an angry UNC team that relinquished a two-goal lead in a 3-2 road loss to No. 5 Old Dominion Tuesday. But with last season's poor road performances in the back of their minds, the Cavaliers travel to Chapel Hill with the knowledge that conference road wins may very well be the key to living up to expectations.
Read More
Katie Grimes posts historic debut as women’s swimming and diving annihilates Virginia Tech
By Xander Tilock | 15 hours agoGrimes broke out as a new superstar for Coach Todd DeSorbo's squad.
Women’s basketball displays stingy defense, but falls short versus No. 14 Duke
By Xander Tilock | 21 hours agoThe Cavaliers nearly conquered a ranked rival but could not generate consistent offense.
You cannot say money is the problem for Virginia football
By Peter Kriebel | YesterdayMoney, after all, is just one aspect of a winning program.
