The No. 15 Virginia men’s soccer team was never shy about its expectations for 2014. From day one, the team set one overarching goal for the season: return to the College Cup.
The Cavaliers (9-5-2, 3-3-2 ACC) certainly had the talent to do so, with several key returning players from 2013 — including senior midfielder Eric Bird, who was named to the Hermann trophy watch list. The team also saw three talented freshmen — defenders Sheldon Sullivan and Wesley Suggs and midfielder Jake Rozhansky — claim starting roles ahead of upperclassmen.
Virginia had few doubters, climbing to as high as No. 2 in the rankings.
But after a disappointing loss to Davidson Sept. 24 and another to Syracuse three days later, the Cavaliers have been stuck meddling outside the top-10 in the polls.
Now the regular season is finished and Virginia can finally get started on its aspirations of postseason excellence. And though coach George Gelnovatch would surely have liked to have entered with a higher number in the win column, he knows his team is as ready as it will ever be to make another run at adding more trophies to the program’s collection of conference and national championships.
“It’s not so much for me your record or where you stand, it’s all these things like your team chemistry, are you healthy, are you playing well,” Gelnovatch said. “The answer to all three of those things are yes.”
Starting Wednesday night against in-state rival Virginia Tech (7-7-2, 2-5-1 ACC), Virginia will embark into postseason play in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament.
And after the team’s past two weeks, it would seem foolish to bet against the Cavaliers. Following a defeat at the hands of Wake Forest — its second loss in three matches — Virginia used last week to re-establish its chemistry.
One day before practice, several seniors — including Bird, defender Kyler Sullivan and goalkeeper Calle Brown — gathered the team and reinforced the need to stay aggressive and stay together.
Sure enough, the Cavaliers looked more unified in Saturday’s 1-1 draw against No. 9 North Carolina — ending the Tar Heels’ seven-game win streak — giving Virginia a sense of confidence it might of lacked a few weeks ago.
“We hit a little bit of a rough patch, but we had older guys meet and really get the team together,” junior midfielder Scott Thomsen said. “That result at UNC was a real big one — the way we played, how disciplined we were — against a really good opponent who was really hot at the time. Taking that game and going forward with it, I think it was a really good result for us.”
Now all eyes are focused on the Hokies, a team the Cavaliers have dominated of late. Virginia is unbeaten in its last nine matches against their in-state rivals, including a 1-0 win earlier this season in which the Cavaliers outshot Virginia Tech, 18-4, and held a 15-2 advantage in corner kicks.
“I thought the last time we played them, we probably should have won by more than a goal,” Gelnovatch said. “I thought we were exceptional in the game. They didn’t cause us too many problems.”
Still, the Cavaliers are cautious not to become over-confident. Nine of the teams’ past 11 matches have been decided by one goal or tied, and despite the Hokies’ reeling season — they have not won a game since September, and have surrendered 11 goals in their last four losses — Virginia Tech presents a scoring threat in freshman forward Ricardo John.
John has blossomed since taking the center forward position for the Hokies after their clash against Virginia, scoring five goals and adding an assist in his first season. To the Cavaliers, he presents one more reason to remain disciplined and avoid the breakdowns which cost them games this season.
“Being an older guy, we know what tourney time is all about now — anybody can beat anybody on any given day,” Thomsen said. “We know Virginia Tech might not have the greatest chance going into NCAAs, but they would love nothing more than to end our ACC run and give us a tough game.”
After battling through early season injuries to key goal-scorers while also enduring the nation’s second toughest schedule by opponents’ win percentage, Virginia now boasts one of the most experienced teams in the conference.
Coming off Saturday’s impressive performance against North Carolina, Virginia finally seems poised to repeat last-season’s success.
“We’re as healthy as we’ve been all year, and we’re coming off a very good performance against a very good team on the road,” Gelnovatch said. “I think we’re in a good place for the playoffs and the ACC tournament.”
Kickoff is scheduled for Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Klöckner Stadium.
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