It was a year they said they had to believe, a year they would exorcise their ACC championship demons and finally beat North Carolina for the first time in 29 attempts. When the dust finally settled over Cary, N.C., in the ACC Women's Soccer Championship, Virginia had done just that and in dramatic fashion.
In a tournament where the Cavaliers scored 11 goals, including an eight-goal drubbing of Virginia Tech, it's easy to forget the efforts of a defense which allowed only three goals in that same period. Standing squarely at the end of that defense is the goalkeeper -- the last line of defense and a position Virginia's Christina de Vries has made entirely her own.
Playing behind a good defense means there are limited opportunities for a keeper to prove her worth. But when it counted most on a sudden death penalty kick, de Vries' save of UNC's Mary McDowell's shot would give Virginia its first ACC championship and finally end North Carolina's streak of 15 consecutive tournament crowns.
"It was such an amazing individual effort," midfielder Kelly Hammond said of de Vries' save. "There is so much pressure on the goalkeeper in those situations, and she came up huge."
De Vries, a sophomore, was finally honored by being named co-MVP of the tournament alongside midfielder teammate Sarah Huffman. Her efforts in the penalty kicks were even more impressive considering she saved only one shot during the entire game, compared to the opposing goalie's four saves.
"She played awfully well," Virginia coach Steve Swanson said. "Our team, in general, doesn't give up that many shots per game. That makes it harder for a goalkeeper. Maybe she only faces four shots in 90 minutes, and she has to make one or two saves at critical times -- that's not easy. She's done that game in and game out."
The tournament was another example of de Vries' stellar play throughout the entire season, and the numbers speak for themselves: 39 saves, only 11 goals allowed and 13 shutouts.
"She's an excellent shot-stopper," Swanson said."It was great to see her come through when we needed her, and I think she proved a lot to herself."
Against Clemson in a crucial ACC regular season contest, de Vries had a career-high six saves to help the Cavaliers break a seven-game losing streak to the Tigers. In that game, de Vries would tie the single season record of shutouts with her 11th. She would set a new record in Virginia's last game of the season, when the Cavaliers' held N.C. State scoreless, winning 3-0. That set up the stage for her tournament heroics. Although she recorded only four saves in three games at the tournament, it was her awareness inside the penalty box that impressed Swanson.
"It was more just coming off her line and shutting some of the attacks down that way," Swanson said.
When asked about her thoughts before the save that would write her name in Virginia women's soccer folklore, she said, "I was thinking 'believe.'"
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