The top-25 ACC soccer bout between No. 3 Virginia and No. 21 Notre Dame was moved to 11 a.m. Saturday morning after torrential rain in northern Indiana Friday night. Despite the prolonged stay in South Bend, Ind., the Cavaliers (8-0, 3-0 ACC) defeated the Fighting Irish (4-3-1, 0-3-0 ACC) 1-0 to stay perfect this season.
This was Virginia’s first road win against Notre Dame since 2014, when the Cavaliers won 1-0 to advance to the NCAA quarterfinals. Virginia went on to win the national championship that year — the seventh and most recent championship in program history.
The match started off quiet for both teams, as they only mustered one shot in the first 18 minutes. Sophomore forward Daryl Dike — who has two goals on the season — attempted a shot from the top of the 18-yard box that was blocked.
In the 37th minute, the Fighting Irish provided the only shot on goal of the first half, as sophomore forward Jack Lynn chested down a pop-up and half-volleyed the ball from thirty yards out. Nevertheless, redshirt junior goalkeeper Colin Shutler was up to the task as he comfortably corralled the ball near the left post.
In the 56th minute, junior forward Irakoze Donasiyano had an opportunity to put Virginia on top. His shot sailed high, however, keeping the two teams knotted at 0-0.
Notre Dame had their second and final shot on goal in the 67th minute, as junior Aiden McFadden took advantage of prolific build-up play by the Fighting Irish to challenge Shutler. Once again, Shutler shut down the attempt and made a diving save to preserve his seventh shutout of the season.
In the 70th minute, things started to turn in Virginia’s favor, and Dike drew a foul inside the 18-yard box. Junior midfielder Joe Bell, who already has one penalty kick goal this season, buried the ball to give the Cavaliers the lead. This proved to be the winning goal, as the Virginia defense held their own against the Notre Dame attack, preserving the shutout and perfect record.
Virginia will face George Washington at Klockner Stadium Tuesday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., and the match will be broadcasted live on ACC Network Extra.
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