A quick look at this weekend's sporting events for the men's soccer, field hockey, volleyball, and swim and dive teams. A preview of this weekend's women's soccer matchup and the football team's upcoming game against Florida State are also available in Thursday's print version of The Cavalier Daily.
Men’s soccer
What: No. 15 Virginia (10-5-2, 3-3-2 ACC) at No. 4 Notre Dame (10-4-3, 6-1-1 ACC)
Where: Alumni Stadium, Notre Dame, Indiana
When: Sunday, 1 p.m.
The eighth-seeded Virginia men’s soccer team will continue its march through the ACC tournament Sunday when the team faces the Fighting Irish in the quarterfinals after a physical win against in-state rival Virginia Tech Wednesday night.
The Cavaliers outdueled the Hokies, 1-0, thanks to a converted penalty kick by junior midfielder Todd Wharton in the 55th minute. The match marked one of the more physical contests of the season for the Cavaliers, who endured a Virginia Tech red card in addition to three Hokie yellow cards.
Following a three-day break, Virginia will again have its hands full against No. 1 seed Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish will be playing their first game in more than a week, as they last defeated Pittsburgh, 4-1. Junior midfielder Patrick Hodan leads Notre Dame with eight goals on the season.
In their previous matchup this season, Virginia — down a man after receiving a red card in the 65th minute — battled the Fighting Irish to a 1-1 double-overtime draw. Senior midfielder Eric Bird netted the lone Cavalier goal in the 68th minute.
Virginia also matched up against Notre Dame in last season’s ACC tournament semifinals. The Cavaliers scored two goals in the final six minutes to force overtime before eventually advancing in a penalty kick shootout.
—compiled by Robert Elder
Field Hockey
What: No. 13 Virginia (12-7, 4-2 ACC) vs. No. 11 Wake Forest (11-6, 3-3 ACC)
Where: Williams Field at Jack Katz Stadium, Durham, North Carolina
When: Friday, Nov. 7, 1 p.m.
After dropping the last three games of the regular season, the Virginia field hockey team aims to return to form as it competes in the ACC tournament semifinals this Friday.
The No. 1 seed Cavaliers will take on No. 4 seed Wake Forest, which defeated No. 5 seed Louisville, 2-1, Thursday. As the top-seeded team for the first time in 16 years, Virginia earned a first-round bye.
The Demon Deacons handed the Cavaliers their first ACC loss when the two teams clashed Oct. 12. Thrust into a 3-1 deficit, freshman midfielder Tara Vittese and senior back Maddie Decerbo each scored goals to cut Wake Forest’s lead to a single goal. Despite the rally, Virginia was unable to complete the comeback as the Demon Deacons held on to win, 4-3.
The Cavaliers appear to be well-rested as they head into the tournament, thanks to the convenient pairing of their regular season bye and the first-round of the conference tournament — hopefully sufficient to sustain the team through the tournament, allowing it capture the program’s first ACC Championship.
—compiled by Chuck Siegel
Volleyball
What: Virginia (15-9, 8-3 ACC) at No. 3 Florida State (23-0, 11-0 ACC); at Miami (15-7, 8-3 ACC)
Where: Tallahassee, Florida; Coral Gables, Florida
When: Friday, 7 p.m.; Sunday, 1 p.m.
The Virginia volleyball team will continue its four-game road trip this weekend to face undefeated Florida State and Miami, two of the top-four teams in the ACC. After winning four straight and positioning themselves at No. 5 in the conference standings, the Cavaliers are on the cusp of making it onto the exclusive list of elite ACC teams.
Unfortunately, the Cavaliers will face two teams which are virtually perfect at home. Miami’s only loss in Coral Gables was to Florida State, and both teams have lost only six sets at home. The Cavaliers are also good at home with just one loss in Memorial Gymnasium, but they have lost 13 sets in comparison.
The Seminoles are currently riding the longest winning streak in school history after beating NC State and Clemson on the road last weekend. After winning three of the last five ACC Championships, the Seminoles were chosen for the third straight year to win the title in the preseason ACC coaches’ poll.
Junior outside hitter Nicole Walch leads the Seminoles with 12 double-doubles on the year, and has been named ACC Player of the Week three times this season.
Virginia’s second opponent of the weekend, Miami, posted 19 wins last season and also made it to the NCAA Tournament alongside Florida State before falling in the first round.
The Hurricanes are led by senior outside hitter Savanah Leaf, who leads the conference in kills per set. She has been named ACC Player of the Week twice this season and much like Virginia senior outside hitter Tori Janowski, she is also climbing the school kills record list, after hitting her 1,000th kill earlier this year.
—compiled by Chanhong Luu
Swim and Dive
What: Virginia men (1-0) vs. No. 1 Michigan (4-0, 2-0 B1G) and No. 18 Penn State (4-1); No. 7 Virginia women (0-0) vs. No. 20 Michigan (4-1, 3-0 B1G) and No. 19 Penn State (7-0)
Where: McCoy Natatorium, University Park, Pennsylvania
When: Friday, 6 p.m. and Saturday, 11 a.m.
The Virginia swimming and diving teams will compete in two dual meets this weekend as they travel to University Park to face both Michigan and Penn State.
The meet will open the season for the Virginia women’s team, as they look to repeat last season’s success under then-first-year coach Augie Busch, who led the Cavaliers to their seventh consecutive ACC Championship en route to ACC Coach of the Year honors.
A similar level of excellence will be necessary to capture two victories this weekend as both Penn State and Michigan are already into the thick of their respective seasons. The Nittany Lions have competed in dual meets during four of the past five weekends, while the Wolverines are coming off victories against No. 11 Indiana and No. 13 Louisville two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, the Virginia men are coming off a 183-117 win against Navy Oct. 24. The Cavaliers won 10 of the meet’s 16 events.
Sophomore Matt Lockman swept his freestyle events, winning both the 50- and 100-yard freestyle, while junior Yannick Kaeser swept the breaststroke discipline, claiming both the 100 and 200 yard events. Additionally, senior diver JB Kolod broke his own school records in the 1-meter and 3-meter diving events with scores of 390.83 and 440.70, respectively.
The Virginia men fell against Penn State in last season’s quad-meet, 191-162, while the women defeated the Nittany Lions 226-127.
—compiled by Robert Elder
Read More
One win away from bowl game eligibility, football hosts No. 13 Southern Methodist
By Ryan Weiner | 5 hours agoIn their home finale, the Cavaliers have a lot to play for.
Elijah Saunders can guide Virginia to victory
By Xander Tilock | 22 hours agoOne of Virginia's rising stars shares his story with The Cavalier Daily.
After striking turnaround, men’s soccer rockets into NCAA Tournament
By Michael Liebermann and Mofeoluwa Akande | 22 hours agoVirginia confronts a tricky draw as it looks to finally turn a high seed into a deep run.
