Redemption can mean deliverance, rescue or, perhaps, what Virginia sports fans will be looking for this weekend.
Tonight, the Virginia men’s soccer team will travel to Fairfax, Va. in search of its first win, facing off against George Mason. Virginia enters the game winless on the season (0-2) and is seeking to break the ice tonight at 8 p.m.
“We know we’re good and we know it’s very early in the season,” Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said. “We’ve got 16 regular-season games and we haven’t started ACC play yet. We’ll be fine. We just need to get back on track and get ourselves going.”
Virginia enters tonight’s road contest hoping to erase the bitter memories of last weekend, when the Cavaliers went 0-2 while hosting the Virginia Soccer Classic. To make matters worse, the Cavaliers were shut out in a 0-1 loss to St. John’s and were blasted 1-3 by Southern Methodist. Although last weekend’s action was only Virginia’s first two games of the season, it was nevertheless a disheartening way to start the year. The Cavaliers will have to have a short-term memory in order to bounce back from their early season shortcomings.
One bright spot for Virginia thus far has been freshman forward Chris Agorsor. The freshman standout scored his first career goal Sunday night against Southern Methodist. Agorsor’s goal was Virginia’s only goal of the weekend. Agorsor outraced two Southern Methodist defenders to one-touch a cross pass from junior forward Matt Mitchell into the back of the net. Though the goal was a beauty that hit the disappointed Klöckner Stadium crowd like a lightning bolt, it was just about the only thing Virginia fans could cheer about.
George Mason enters Friday’s game with a 1-0-1 (0-0 Colonial Athletic Association) record after posting a win against American and a draw against George Washington this past weekend participating in the D.C. College Cup, where the Patriots finished second among a group of teams from the D.C. area. Both of George Mason’s games reached overtime, which speaks to the parity of talent the tournament featured. The Patriots defeated American 1-0 on an overtime goal and tied George Washington 1-1.
George Mason is not a program that comes to mind when one thinks about traditional soccer powers. To be truthful, the Patriots are not at the elite level yet. They are, however, edging ever closer. In 2006, George Mason was selected to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 10 years. It was a major step for the growing program, but the Patriots were unable to match that success in 2007. After a number of devastating injuries, George Mason was only able to score 15 goals throughout the season en route to a subpar 5-11-2 record.
2008, however, is a new year, and a year that brings the nation’s No. 33-ranked recruiting class to Fairfax, along with the return of several healthy leaders. Offensively, the Patriots are led by sophomore forwards Parker Walton and Irvin Martinez. Walton scored his first career goal last weekend, when he blasted the ball by the American goalkeeper to give George Mason a golden-goal victory. Senior defender Michael Vallie and sophomore defender Eric Zuehsow lead the defense. Both defenders were named to the D.C. College Cup all-tournament team.
“It [the game] will be at their place, which is always a tough place to play,” Gelnovatch said. “They will be a good opponent.”
There is no doubt George Mason will present quite a challenge for Virginia, although the Patriots did suffer a 0-4 loss to Georgetown in the preseason. Considering Virginia’s recent struggles, however, the Cavaliers would be more than happy to end Friday night with a “W.”
“Well, we’re just going to go,” sophomore goalkeeper Dan Louisignau said. “I’m positive they’re a good squad — everyone is at this level. It’s just a matter of giving it our all. If we can do that, I’m sure we’ll come out with a win.”
Following the trip to Fairfax, Virginia returns home Sunday and hosts Hofstra at 7 p.m. Hofstra is currently 0-1-1 but has a game tonight at Virginia Tech.
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