On a warm Halloween evening, Virginia women’s soccer capped off its regular season campaign with a 1-0 win over in-state rival No. 12 Virginia Tech. The Cavaliers (12-5-0, 5-5-0 ACC) controlled the game from start to finish, holding the Hokies (11-4-3, 6-2-2 ACC).
Virginia did not wait long to get on the scoreboard. After some consistent Cavalier pressure culminated with a corner kick in the 12th minute, senior midfielder Lia Godfrey’s cross found unmarked junior attacker Meredith McDermott in the box, who tapped the ball into the bottom right of the net. That early goal would be the only brace of the match, as the Cavalier defense played its part beautifully.
Virginia Tech nearly equalized near the end of the first half with a well-placed header by freshman attacker Taylor Lewin, but sophomore goalkeeper Victoria Safradin saved the net for the Cavaliers. In a period where Virginia had most of the scoring opportunities, the Hokies reminded them that their one-goal lead was not a comfortable one.
The Cavaliers came out of halftime with the same high energy they showed in the previous period, keeping most of the possession and controlling the tempo, but failed to find the net. The lack of clinicality on Virginia’s side almost came back to bite them in the 64th minute when Virginia Tech’s junior forward Natalie Mitchell dribbled past Safradin on a breakaway, but the ball miraculously skied the chance over the net.
A couple minutes later, Price once again found herself in scoring position when a cross fizzed in from the right side, yet her attempt barely missed outside the left post. As the final whistle echoed throughout Blacksburg, Virginia left the pitch with a sweet victory over its rival.
Though the game had its ebbs and flows, the Cavaliers’ performance was hard fought and certainly deserving of several points. They had a similar amount of shots as Virginia Tech but managed seven corners compared to the Hokies’ one.
With its win, Virginia has managed to reach .500 in ACC play, matching its conference win percentage from last year which resulted in the Cavaliers failing to reach the ACC tournament for the first time this century. While Virginia will once again finish just outside of the conference’s top six, its overall record of 12-5 is a four-win improvement from last year.
Despite the Cavaliers missing out on conference postseason play for the second consecutive season, they will make their return to the NCAA Tournament — likely as a high seed due to their No. 12 ranking in the NCAA Rating Percentage Index.
The tournament selection show will take place Nov. 11, and first-round play begins Nov. 15 and spans until Nov. 17.
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