Hot off their win Friday against Temple, No. 3 Virginia field hockey traveled to Lynchburg for a matchup against the No. 11 Liberty squad Sunday. The Cavaliers (3-0, 0-0 ACC) fought off the Flames (2-1, 0-0 Big East) to clinch a hard fought 2-1 victory.
Liberty came out swinging in the first quarter, putting up two shots on goal, both of which were blocked by senior goalkeeper Tyler Kennedy. Liberty dominated shots in the first quarter, putting up four to Virginia’s zero, along with two corners.
With the score still even, Virginia found its stride two minutes into the second quarter when graduate midfielder Suze Leemans found the net on the rebound of a blocked corner shot. The goal was Leemans’ third of the season. As a whole, the team outshot Liberty 7-0 in the second quarter, bouncing back from a lackluster opening.
The Cavaliers stayed ahead of the Flames all the way through to the fourth quarter, dominating offensive play with nine shots to Liberty’s one. Additionally, Virginia fired four corner shots compared to the Flames’ single corner. However, Liberty once again found life three minutes and 48 seconds into the final quarter when freshman midfielder Josefina Tomasi hit a reverse from the left side to tie the game 1-1.
With just over seven minutes remaining, it appeared that Virginia had retaken the lead when junior midfielder Daniella Mendez-Trendler scored off a corner, however the goal was called back after official review, leaving the game wide open for a Liberty victory.
However, the Cavaliers slammed the door shut on the Flames three minutes later. When senior striker Jans Croon’s took a shot off a corner, it deflected off a defender’s stick and into the back of the net. The point made Croon the seventh different Cavalier to score a goal in the first three games of the season, showcasing the squad’s depth on the offensive front.
From there, Virginia hung on, clinching their third win in a row and their second ranked victory of the season. Throughout the match, Kennedy made six saves to keep Liberty’s scoring under control. While offensive production was not as high as it was in their 7-0 pounding of Temple, the Cavaliers demonstrated their ability to remain resilient and aggressive across four quarters, coming back from a zero-shot first quarter to finish the game with 14 shots compared to Liberty’s nine.
Up next, Virginia will travel to College Park, Md. for a highly-ranked matchup Friday against No. 4 Maryland — a rematch of the 2023 NCAA Quarterfinals where Virginia won 4-0. The game will start at 7 p.m. and will be streamed on BigTen+. When the Cavaliers return home, they will face California for the first time since the Golden Bears joined the ACC, a matchup that will be played at 6 p.m. Sept. 20 and will stream on ACC Network.
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