The Virginia men's soccer team begins ACC play tomorrow in Raleigh, N.C. against North Carolina State (3-2-1, 0-1 ACC). The Cavaliers have posted a record of 5-1 thus far this season, the only loss coming to then-No. 9 Southern Methodist University. Even with the SMU loss, the Cavaliers are ranked third nationally, while Southern Methodist is now ranked 11th after losses to UC Santa Barbara and Washington.
"5-1 is definitely how we want to be heading into the conference games," junior forward Yannick Reyering said. "Everybody is confident, we are ready to compete."
Against SMU the Cavaliers struggled on set pieces, where other teams can take advantage of Virginia's smaller size.
On the other hand, this year's squad is one of the deepest and most athletic teams to play at Klöckner Stadium. Virginia's come-from-behind win Wednesday over Campbell shows that the Cavaliers can outrun and outplay opponents down to the wire.
Now entering ACC play, the Cavaliers will need to concentrate on using the strengths they have discovered in the past six games and minimizing the mistakes made on set pieces.
"You are never fully comfortable [before starting ACC play] -- we will start really focusing tonight," Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said. "It's our opening weekend similar to last year at N.C. State -- it's going to be a tough game."
The SMU game aside, the theme for the Cavaliers this season has been defense, as they have only allowed one goal in their other five games. The successful transition of sophomore goalkeeper Michael Giallombardo -- from graduate Ryan Burke's backup to an everyday starter -- has played a significant role in the new Cavalier defense.
This will be the first true road test for the Cavaliers since the Southern Methodist game, with the added pressure of it being the ACC opener.
"Of course, being on the road will be hard for us -- we have struggled on the road," sophomore midfielder Neil Barlow said. "But I think that with this group of guys we can do it -- I feel confident. We have been playing well."
The Cavaliers cannot overlook N.C. State with an eye on the rest of their ACC schedule, which will be among the toughest in NCAA men's soccer. There are currently five ACC teams in the NSCAA/adidas national rankings, and two more receiving consideration votes. Wake Forest and Virginia top the list, ranked first and third, respectively, while Duke, Virginia Tech and Maryland are all in the top 16.
"I think that from top to bottom this year -- I mean the ACC is always strong -- the league might be as strong as it has ever been," Gelnovatch said. "N.C. State and [Virginia] Tech were at the bottom last year, and this year they are just as good as anybody."
N.C. State will bring a relatively young team to the game Saturday, as its roster features four seniors and 10 freshmen. Despite their youth, the Wolfpack seems to be spreading the time on the field around the upperclassmen rather than throwing the freshmen onto the fire.
"N.C. State is basically the same team as last year but a little more experienced," Gelnovatch said. "They have gotten off to a better start than they have in the past, and I think they have a little confidence under their belt."
North Carolina handed N.C. State its second loss of the season in Raleigh last Saturday by a score of 1-0. With Longwood up next on the schedule, N.C. State will be focused on not falling to 0-2 in the ACC.
"They lost their first ACC match at home, and I think they are going to be looking to take it out on us," Gelnovatch said.
Reyering added that the Cavaliers are confident going into the game and look forward to the challenge of ACC play.
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