Following a surprising 1-1 draw with No. 9 Clemson Thursday, Virginia women’s soccer failed to secure their first ACC win in a 2-1 loss in Raleigh, NC. against NC State Sunday afternoon. The Wolfpack (2-7-5, 1-3-2 ACC) were able to net two early scores in the first 15 minutes of the game, and it seemed their offense would be too dominant to overcome. While the Cavaliers (5-3-5, 0-3-3 ACC) were able to score one back in the second half to keep the game a shot away from even, they never were able to match NC State and ran out of time to equalize.
From kickoff, the Wolfpack were pesky and found ample ways to create shots. Within three minutes, they already had the pressure on Virginia by means of a shot from junior midfielder Emika Kawagishi. Though freshman keeper Victoria Safradin was able to get the save, it would only be a few more minutes before the Cavalier defense collapsed and allowed a shot from senior forward Jameese Joseph to ricochet and find its way to the back of the net, putting NC State up 1-0.
This sequence would repeat itself less than 10 minutes later, when the Wolfpack broke through the Virginia line and earned themselves a corner kick in the 12th minute. The kick set up a remarkable lead pass from freshman forward Hannah Jibril into the box, where junior midfielder Annika Wohner capitalized and put NC State up 2-0. After this, the Cavaliers found a way to tighten up their defense, only allowing the Wolfpack to take one more shot in the half.
The back end of the first half saw Virginia go on a relentless attack in an attempt to shorten their deficit, but it was all to no avail. All five shots taken after the NC State goals were saved or were off goal, and the Cavaliers found themselves in the same spot as they were before despite having these chances alongside four corner kicks.
After the break, Virginia continued to levy immense pressure on the Wolfpack’s back line. Numerous possessions between the 50th and 60th minutes resulted in quality shots from sophomore midfielders Jill Flammia and Maggie Cagle, but still no goals were scored. Finally, the Cavaliers were able to break through and get on the scoreboard via a header from freshman forward Allie Ross that came from a pinpoint cross from Cagle.
Seeing their pressure pay off with a score must have lit a fire within the Virginia squad, as they continued to put up shots at a much higher clip than NC State. The Virginia defense remained strong, only allowing two shots all half from the Wolfpack. In contrast, the Cavaliers put up a whopping 14 shots in the back stretch, aiming to secure at least one point by means of equalizing the game.
Unfortunately for Virginia, their breakthrough just never came. A deep shot in the 69th minute by Flammia came just inches from settling in the top left corner, just barely hitting the crossbar, and the shot’s rebound by Ross was also a huge chance for the Cavaliers before it was snatched up by NC State junior keeper Olivia Pratapas. Minutes later, a header by sophomore forward Maya Carter also hit the crossbar before being cleared out by the Wolfpack defense. Eventually, Virginia just ran out of time, falling 2-1.
The Cavaliers have still failed to win an ACC game, a trend that is shocking given that they were at one point ranked as a top five team in the nation. They now sit at 12th in the ACC alone, only above future opponents Syracuse and Boston College — who they will play later this month. While there is certainly hope for this Virginia team to bounce back and secure some wins down the stretch, the Cavaliers will have to do a better job of enforcing pressure for a full 90 minutes instead of just 60. With a good matchup in the ACC Tournament and a possible appearance in the NCAA Tournament at stake, every minute of every game down the stretch will matter for Virginia.
Virginia is back in Klöckner Stadium for the Commonwealth Clash against Virginia Tech squad Sunday at 1:30 p.m and will be broadcast on ACCNX.
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