At tonight's match against the Boston College Eagles, the seniors of the Virginia women's soccer team will be honored as they say farewell to their second home, Klöckner Stadium.
"It's going to be sad, and at this point, I can't even say it's going to be bittersweet," senior forward Kara Frederick said. "This last home game is going to be very emotional, but hopefully I, and the whole team, will channel all that energy into getting the win."
The senior class will be recognized prior to kickoff. The honorees include Frederick, goalkeeper Christina de Vries, midfielder Nikki Lieb and forward Kristin Weiss. Academic senior Shannon Foley, who medically red-shirted this season, plans to return in 2007 for her fifth year of eligibility. Weiss, who has had to medically red-shirt two full seasons, may opt to petition for a 6th year of eligibility.
While they recognize that senior night will be a fond memory to look back on, the seniors insist they won't let the team forget the night's primary task -- defeating Boston College.
"The first thing I am concerned about Friday is winning," de Vries said. "I am really hoping the team comes out strong -- that's the best way to honor us. I think senior night will just be another incentive for the team to come together and play our best."
The No. 19 Eagles arrive in Charlottesville 3-3-1 in the ACC and 9-5-1 overall. With Boston College having only recently joined the conference, the teams have only just begun meeting regularly. Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, last year's matchup saw them fall 1-0 at Newton Campus Field in Boston.
"We know that B.C. is a really physical team," Frederick said. "They are big girls, so we are going to have to try and keep the ball out of the air. We want to play Virginia soccer -- that means keeping the ball on the ground, using the width of the field and putting away as many chances as we can."
The Cavaliers are coming off an eight-day rest, a game-free stretch which has given the team the opportunity to start this week's practices on fresh legs. Indeed, the sessions earlier in the week were intense as the team trained hard and focused on technical skills.
"We've been focusing on us, not our opponents," Lieb said. "We've been working on the things we know we need to improve on in order to come out stronger."
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