The No. 3 Virginia field hockey team (15-2, 3-2 ACC) ended its regular season on a high note Saturday with a 2-1 win against No. 18 Duke (8-10, 0-5 ACC) in Durham, N.C. The victory pushed the Cavaliers' win streak to four games.
After a scoreless first half, Virginia junior forward Paige Selenski scored off a penalty corner six minutes into the second period. The Blue Devils were able to answer eight minutes later, however. Junior midfielder Tara Jennings - sister of Cavalier junior midfielder Rachel Jennings - scored on a Duke penalty corner against junior goalkeeper Adrienne Ostroff.
Duke pushed for a winning goal during the culminating 20 minutes, hoping to secure their first ACC win and improve their chances at a postseason berth. The Cavaliers, though, were not thwarted. With less than two minutes in the game, freshman forward Elly Buckley scored the game-winning goal off the rebound of her own saved shot.
Virginia will now compete in the 2010 ACC Championship as the No. 3 seed. The Cavaliers will face No. 6 seed Duke again Thursday in Winston-Salem, N.C.
-compiled by Allen Kha