In a clash of national championship contenders, Virginia field hockey journeyed down to Chapel Hill, N.C. Friday for a showdown against North Carolina. Most of the competition played out in the second half of the game, during which the No. 4 Cavaliers (12-3, 5-2 ACC) could not find their footing as the No. 2 Tar Heels (13-0, 6-0 ACC) continued their undefeated season with a 4-0 stomping of the visitors.
The game led off with a sleepy first period with little excitement offensively, unlike both teams' typical playing styles. In an attempt to limit opposing possessions, Virginia tried out a new tactic — passing the ball back to their defenders in order to recenter.
By the end of the first quarter, neither team had a penalty corner, there was only one shot on goal — by North Carolina — and the period ended scoreless.
While the Cavaliers were moving slowly, they were able to dominate time of possession in the second quarter. With their stick work visibly improved from past games, Virginia started to heat up — the first 10 minutes of the period often saw all 10 of its non-goalkeeper players on the Tar Heels' side of the field.
Unfortunately, the Cavaliers’ patient and non-aggressive strategy caught up to them as North Carolina's spark began to appear. With just under three minutes left in the first half, the Tar Heels swiftly stole possession and ran the ball down the field.
North Carolina's junior forward Ryleigh Heck took advantage of a fumbled pass by Virginia, taking the opportunity to drive the ball towards the goal. As senior goalkeeper Tyler Kennedy dove to block the ball, Heck's shot flew right above her head to mark the only goal of the first half, the scoreboard now reading 1-0 for the Tar Heels.
The Cavaliers swiftly responded to put pressure back on North Carolina though, holding the ball for most of the second period. However, they were not able to take offensive action when they had those advantages — Virginia walked off the field for halftime with no corners and no shots on goal.
Barely 50 seconds into the second half, the first penalty corner was called for the Tar Heels, and after their first shot was deflected, sophomore forward Charly Bruder found her fire. Bruder slammed the ball towards the goal, where it bounced off of the right goalpost to widen the Tar Heels' gap to 2-0.
North Carolina clearly did not like to see the Cavaliers dictate the pace of the second quarter and came back from the locker room to dominate. Virginia was not able to get a hold on either side of their opponent's playing, and its playing started to lose coordination.
The Cavaliers saw their disadvantage grow to another level when graduate midfielder Meghen Hengerer — one of Virginia's key defensive players — was sent out of the game for 10 minutes for tripping a Tar Heel player. Down one player, the Cavaliers seemed to lose some of their fight.
North Carolina was awarded two consecutive corners, the first of which Kennedy was able to save, but on the second, Bruder once again came in swinging, and the ball was able to sneak past Kennedy, making the score 3-0.
Virginia entered the fourth period with a serious need to play catch-up — both on the scoreboard and in their playing pace. The Cavaliers had not had one corner or a shot on goal compared to the Tar Heels who were running off of nine shots. Having lost their consistency, Virginia's short stretches of great play were not going to cut it against a team of North Carolina's caliber.
The Cavaliers did not rise to the occasion — so much so that Coach Ole Keusgen could be heard shouting at his players to push on the Tar Heels. Virginia took some time to regroup, once again slowing down and gaining back its control. However, as seen earlier in the game, good stick work can mean nothing without an offensive push.
In the fourth minute of the final quarter, Kennedy was faced with yet another tough lineup as she prepared to defend a penalty corner. Bruder hit the ball with so much force that while Kennedy's body blocked it from going into the goal, the ball was able to bounce off of her pads and make it into the net, marking Bruder's hat trick and the widest score deficit the Cavaliers have seen all season at a shocking 4-0.
Even though fighting seemed futile, Virginia kept pushing and finally got their first corner with just under five minutes left in the game, during which they hesitated to lose the one second they had to shoot.
Even though the Cavaliers brought their offense back to life, they did it too late. With only one shot on goal just over a minute before the end of the period, spectators saw Virginia falter in a way they have not yet this season as it got shut out. While the Cavaliers were able to control the run of play in the second quarter, their lack of closing power killed their chances of a solid competition versus North Carolina.
Even with this brutal loss, Virginia will certainly make the ACC Tournament, where eight of the nine ACC teams will be invited. Where they will be seeded, however, is still in question. Duke was able to come out on top over Boston College Friday, who had previously been undefeated in conference play. There is no question that these four teams will make up the top four ACC contenders, but with the Cavaliers' showing tonight, no one knows where they will sit.
Virginia will play their final regular season game versus Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C. Friday. The game is set to begin at 5 p.m. and will be streamed on ACCNX.
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