The Virginia men's soccer team could have panicked after the University of Maryland, Baltimore County converted on its first shot of the game.
The Cavaliers lost a tough game on Saturday in Chapel Hill, and had taken 10 shots without success before UMBC'S goal, and thus had to play catch-up. This did not prove insurmountable, however, as the No. 22 Cavaliers (6-2-0) scored twice in the last eight minutes of the first half and went on to a 3-1 victory over UMBC (4-2-1).
Virginia dominated possession in the game's first 34 minutes, but the Retrievers went ahead on a broken play.
UMBC's Matt Watson won the ball from two Virginia defenders and sent a pass to forward Derek McElligott, who stood just outside the box. McElligott froze two defenders and unleashed a 20-yard rocket that cleanly beat Cavalier goalkeeper Ryan Burke.
The Cavaliers kept the heat on after falling behind, however, and drew level less than four minutes later.
Hunter Freeman, who assisted on all three Virginia goals, sent a free kick into the box, which found the head of Ian Holder. Holder's initial shot was stopped by UMBC goalkeeper Andy Marchica, but the rebound was trickled into the net by defender Matt Oliver. Marchica felt he had been fouled before the goal, but the appeal went on deaf ears.
Five minutes later, Virginia's Zane Hill sent a ball wide to Freeman, who played a cross into the box. A charging Holder hammered the ball into the net past a helpless Marchica, giving the Cavaliers a lead they would not relinquish.
Virginia coach George Gelnovatch expected his team to respond after falling behind.
"Even after they scored that goal, I knew we would get a goal," Gelnovatch said. "Every time we have been scored upon [this season], we have responded. Nobody panicks, nobody points a finger."
Possession in the second half was again controlled by Virginia, but the game was not put out of reach until the 72nd minute.
Freeman played a thru ball to sophomore striker Adam Cristman, who then sent a pass across the face of the goal. Midfielder Chris Tierney roofed the ball into a yawning net for his first career goal, ending the scoring in the 3-1 win for the Cavaliers.
"It was a good night," Freeman said. "Luckily enough, people finished off the balls I played. All in all, I thought I played pretty good."
Gelnovatch talked about Freeman's abilities in varying situations.
"He is obviously a great defender -- athletic, tenacious, hard, smart," Gelnovatch said. "But he is also a guy who can get up and down the right side and is dangerous. He's dangerous because he comes into the attack late and he rips in a nasty, dangerous ball, either on restarts or on the run of play when he's getting behind defenses and ripping balls in."
Freeman has tallied one goal and seven assists in eight games this season, an improvement on four total assists in his previous two years. In the past three games, Freeman has posted seven points on a goal and five assists.
The Cavaliers will look to build on the momentum of this come-from-behind victory on Saturday with an ACC home date against N.C. State.
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