For nearly a third of the Virginia men's soccer team, tonight's match against Mercer could be their last appearance at home in the Cavalier uniform.
Eight seniors will be honored tonight before Virginia's last regular season home game, including goalkeeper Kyle Rudzinski, defensemen Zola Short and Matt Williams, midfielders Chris Tierney, Jeremy Barlow, Will Hall and Dane Murphy and forward Matt Ayotte.
Although technically listed as a junior, Yannick Reyering will also be recognized this evening, as this is his final year of NCAA eligibility.
For these veteran members, however, defeating Mercer (6-10-0) is about much more than securing a victory on senior night: It is a step toward getting Virginia (9-4-2, 1-3-2 ACC) out of what players and coaches alike have described as a "funk."
"The senior night stuff is all great, and it is nice to be honored in that way," Tierney said. "But it is just another game, that's the way I'm looking at it. We are just trying to focus on getting a win, because I'd rather be celebrating in December than on a Tuesday night where we really need a victory."
Indeed, after Friday night's demoralizing 2-1 double-overtime loss to the Blue Devils, a win tonight is a necessity.
"Things happen, soccer is a cruel game like that, and there's only so much that you can really do," Tierney said. "I think that tomorrow night you will see a little more bite than you would have had we won the [Duke] game, so it could end up being a good loss for us."
After Friday night's contest, Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said the team would not practice again until Monday in the hopes that a short break from soccer might help his team get back on track.
"We definitely needed a little time off after the game on Friday," Tierney said. "When there is a loss as bad as Friday night felt, I think that it is very important for us to recharge the battery and get a fresh start for the rest of the season, which we are not out of by any means."
There is a consensus among team members that something must change. The difficulty, however, is determining what exactly needs to be done. The Cavaliers have already demonstrated that they have the talent and physical prowess to compete with the best teams in the country. At the moment, though, they cannot seem to bring it all together for the full 90 minutes.
"Like coach said, it's not bad attitudes, there's not a lack of effort, we've been working really hard," Short said. "We just need to be able to concentrate for a full 90 minutes, focus and execute."
In addition to winning tonight, Short outlined some of the team's other objectives: a concerted effort on the part of every player on the field, complete control of the game and living up to the team's full potential.
Following this contest, the Cavaliers have only two more regular season matches before heading into the postseason. Therefore, tonight's game serves as a critical launching point as Virginia begins heading down the season's final stretch.
"We have a team that is perfectly capable of winning every game that we set out to play," Tierney said. "And tonight I think we are going to come out a little bit angry"
Read More
Virginia annihilated 41-14 in a must-win contest versus North Carolina
By Peter Kriebel | YesterdayJust about everything that could have gone wrong for Virginia football went wrong.
No. 24 women’s soccer not to be denied in late win over Clemson
By Sam Chun | YesterdayThe Cavaliers topped Clemson 1-0 in front of a packed out Klöckner Stadium.
Men’s soccer, totally discombobulated, capitulates early to No. 5 Pittsburgh
By Michael Liebermann | YesterdayPittsburgh set a program record for the quickest cluster of three goals.
