No. 12 Virginia field hockey hosted Temple Friday evening in its home opener at Turf Field before taking on in-state opponent James Madison Sunday afternoon. The Cavaliers (3-1, 0-0 ACC) defeated both the Owls (3-1, 0-0 AAC) and the Dukes (2-2, 0-0 SBC) by scores of 1-0 and 3-2, respectively.
Game 1- Virginia 1, Temple 0
Despite dominating possession minutes against Temple and tallying 11 shots to its three, a lone second-quarter goal by sophomore midfielder Noa Boterman made the difference for Virginia Friday night.
Virginia’s first scoring opportunity came early in the first quarter with a tackle by Boterman at the top of the Cavaliers’ own circle. This started Virginia’s first offensive break that ended in a reverse shot by graduate midfielder Annie McDonough that sailed over the goal.
Another opportunity came in the middle of the first quarter when the Cavaliers earned two consecutive corner penalties that resulted in two shots by senior midfielder Adele lacobucci, though neither could find the back of the goal.
Temple was also able to generate some offense in the first quarter on a breakaway by sophomore offensive midfielder Tess Muller, which allowed the Owls to tally their first shot.
Overall, the first quarter consisted of a lot of back-and-forth in the midfield with both teams moving scoreless into the second.
The Virginia attack was quick to mobilize in the second quarter with an early opportunity to find a chance alone in the circle, but the shot was cleared by senior goalkeeper Molly Frey with no follow-up shot.
Only minutes later, lacobucci forced another Virginia corner penalty. The ball was inserted to Iacobucci who faked a shot. The ball slipped to an unguarded Boterman who found the back of the goal.
Temple garnered some offensive opportunities in the second quarter. Freshman midfielder Agustina Tucceri forced a turnover and attempted a fast breakaway, but was stopped on a double team before entering Virginia’s circle. Towards the end of the quarter, the Owls earned a penalty corner and tallied their second shot which was cleared by sophomore goalkeeper Tyler Kennedy, sending the Cavaliers into halftime up 1-0.
After the half, aggression started to build and Virginia was given a man-up opportunity after a yellow card on sophomore midfielder Devin Kinzel but was unable to capitalize. Boterman forced another corner, ending in a shot by graduate defender Lindsay Dickinson that was cleared by Frey. The follow-up shot by the Cavaliers sailed high past the back post.
Virginia earned another opportunity to widen the scoring gap when a penalty stroke was called, but the shot by McDonough went wide past the right post. The Cavaliers dominated possession in the third quarter, but the scoreboard did not reflect it.
The fourth quarter saw much more fight over control of the game. Temple was awarded a penalty corner, but could not find the back of the goal. They were also given two man-up opportunities with green cards on Boterman and junior midfielder Meghen Hengerer but did not capitalize there either.
Despite ample scoring opportunities for both teams in the second half, the scoreboard remained 1-0, ending Virginia’s first home game with a win for the Cavaliers.
“You can’t always play pretty,” Coach Michele Madison said. “Sometimes you have to get down and dirty and that’s what we have to work on. Sometimes you just have to put it in your back pocket and get ready for the next game. And that’s what we’ll do.”
Game 2- Virginia 3, James Madison 2
The Dukes struck early Sunday afternoon, netting the first goal only 3:59 into the first period. Senior midfielder Emily Harrison chipped the ball over the head of Kennedy for her first goal of the season.
Virginia quickly responded as junior striker Lilly Hengerer evened the score on an unassisted goal just under three minutes later.
The end of the first period would remain scoreless. Virginia took four additional shots, three of which were blocked by junior James Madison goalkeeper Brandelynn Heinbaugh. The Dukes’ only additional shot of the period came from a penalty corner but missed high.
The second period got off to a slow start, but after one shot wide and one shot saved, James Madison’s senior forward Eveline Zwager found the back of the net to give the Dukes a 2-1 lead.
The Cavaliers were unable to create much offensive momentum and were held to only one shot for the duration of the second period.
The third period was much of the same, as both the Cavaliers and the Dukes only made one blocked shot each.
After going scoreless for over 52 minutes, Virginia finally found the back of the net again. The Cavaliers pulled their goalie, and with 1:29 left in the game, Boterman scored the equalizer.
The Cavaliers and the Dukes headed into overtime tied at 2-2. After nearly six minutes of back-and-forth possessions, Virginia senior striker Laura Janssen hit the game-winner with the assist coming from Iacobucci. This was Janssen’s fourth goal of the season. She currently leads all Virginia players in both goals and total points.
In this 3-2 victory, Virginia outshot James Madison 14-8. This was the eighth consecutive win for the Cavaliers over the Dukes.
“I was really impressed with how the team was able to get their game back in the fourth quarter,” Madison said. “After we pulled the goalie, they caught on fire and started playing our game. In overtime, they had their skills back and kept possession and found a way to put the ball in the goal.”
Virginia looks ahead to a tough matchup against No. 1 Northwestern on the road. They’ll play in Evanston, Ill. Sunday at noon.
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