Every Virginia sports team obviously strives to avoid losing. But while fans generally wail and gnash their teeth following an upset, the women's soccer team opts for a different approach. That's because the women know that an unexpected loss provides opportunities beyond demonstrating that they are not sore losers.
Last Sunday night, the Cavaliers suffered a major defeat. The Maryland Terrapins, who came into the game in last place in the conference, won their first ACC match of the season 2-0. In addition to the Terrapins' home-field advantage, they had a one-man advantage for 80 minutes after a Virginia defender was ejected from the game on what many viewed as a questionable red-card call.
"We get closer, there is more solidarity involved after a loss like that," senior Kara Frederick said. "Most teams are so close when they are happy and winning, but when we lose so unexpectedly, we end up coming together and using one another for support to help propel us into the next game."
In a game like Sunday's, the result is ultimately not the most important factor in determining whether the game was a success for the team. Regardless of whether the Cavaliers won, the entire team saw what they were made of.
"It doesn't matter what I think or what the team thinks about a call," Virginia coach Steve Swanson said. "We have to deal with the calls that are made and keep fighting, and that is exactly what these girls did, and I think it says a lot about our team."
Frederick echoed her coach's sentiments.
"I learned that we can play with heart under any circumstances," Frederick said.
Earlier in the season, the Cavaliers suffered an equally unexpected 1-0 defeat at the hands of Seton Hall. Indeed, anyone who has ever played soccer, or been an avid fan, knows that it is a sport that often fails to reward the better team with a win. A team may outshoot another 13-3, but if just one of those three shots hits the back of the net and none of the 13 do, then the team that has dominated the game will lose. While this hardly seems fair, "undeserved" wins and losses are a hallmark of the sport itself.
"Knowing that on any given day any team could beat another, that's the beauty of it," Frederick said. "Everyone knows that those types of losses are going to happen -- it happens to every team in every season. We know what we are in for when we step out on the field."
Like mistakes, losses are a part of life and acceptable as long as lessons are learned and action is taken to prevent them in the future. For the Virginia women, that means channeling negative emotions, such as anger and frustration, toward a positive end.
"Tuesday, we came out, and we worked our butts off for each other," Frederick said. "There's a silver lining to this cloud -- we got the experience we needed heading into the [ACC] Tournament, and it's good to have that under our belts now, rather than later."
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