It was a tale of two halves for the offense of the women's soccer team in its 3-0 victory over Virginia Tech last night.
The fourth-ranked Cavaliers (12-2-1, 4-2-1 ACC) dominated the Hokies (8-7-0, 3-5-0) statistically in the first half but had little to show for it. The halftime score was 0-0, despite the fact that Virginia outshot Tech, 11-0. The Hokies' defense guarded the Cavaliers well, frequently intercepting Virginia passes close to the goal. When presented with good scoring opportunities, the Cavaliers often wasted them by shooting the ball just over the net.
The second half was a different story. The Cavaliers kept constant pressure on Tech's defense and appeared to wear their opponents down as the game progressed. Virginia took 13 shots and converted on three of them to earn the win.
Junior midfielder Sarah Huffman produced two of the Cavaliers' three goals, doubling her season total. Her first goal came 15 minutes into the second half. Assisted by junior midfielder Noelle Keselica, Huffman hit a low-post shot to give the Cavaliers a 1-0 lead.
On Huffman's second goal, sophomore forward Ariel Thompson dribbled the ball back and forth several times before passing to her teammate. Huffman then made a strong kick from outside of the box to put Virginia up 3-0.
Midfielder Kelly Hammond discussed the difference between the team's play in the first and second halves.
"In the second half we made some adjustments and competed a lot harder than we did in the first half," she said. "We kept getting the quality chances that we were getting in the first half, but we actually finished them."
Hammond scored in between Huffman's two goals. After receiving a pass from senior forward Lindsay Gusick, Hammond kicked a long shot to the upper-left corner of the net. The ball was perfectly placed out of the Tech goalkeeper's reach, making the score 2-0.
The Cavaliers' offense may have been inconsistent overall, but their defense performed superbly for the entire game.
Virginia did not allow the Hokies to register a shot until five minutes into the second half when Tech put up their lone shot of the game. The Hokies were never able to put together a sustained offensive drive.
The Cavaliers outshot the Hokies 24-1, marking the sixth time this season that their goal total has topped their opponents' number of attempts.
"I think we were fortunate in this game," Virginia coach Steve Swanson said. "I didn't think we were as in-tune to one another as we normally are. [But] I'm taking an ACC win and I'm very happy to get it"
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