Both soccer teams faced critical ACC matches this past weekend, as the men hosted Boston College yesterday afternoon while the women finished off their road games at No. 5 Wake Forest. Both teams were happy with the result, as the men won 2-0 and the women tied 0-0.
Women's Soccer
In a bit of a recurring theme, the Virginia women’s soccer team concluded the road portion of its 2009 regular season with a 0-0 tie at No. 5 Wake Forest. The Cavaliers move to 7-5-4 overall and 2-4-2 in the ACC with the draw, while the Demon Deacons go to 12-3-2 overall and 4-2-2 in the ACC. That's probably more ties than they'd like, but it sure beats Clemson, who sits at 0 ties, but a 3-14-0 (0-9-0 ACC) record. That's right. This was just an unnecessary jab at Clemson. And I don't take it back.
"This has been traditionally a tough place [We're back to talkin gabout Wake again now, not Clemson) for us to get a result, so while we would have liked to get three points, we will take the tie," said head coach Steve Swanson. "I was pleased with the effort and we had chances to get a goal to win this game. There were enough positives from this game that we can take into next week when we have a pair of key home games to close out the regular season."
While the Lady Cavaliers were outshot by Wake 9-12 and each team had six corner kicks, UVA goalie Chantel Jones made four saves in the net to post her second consecutive shutout and her sixth of the season. Wake's goalie Amanda Barasha also had two saves.
UVA returns home next week to round out their regular season schedule with a pair of home games -- Florida State on Friday night and Miami on Sunday afternoon. Currently, Virginia is 9th in the ACC. To give you a sense as to just how tough the ACC is, currently there are six teams in the top 15 (No. 2 UNC, No. 5 Duke, No. 7 FSU, No. 8 BC, No. 13 Maryland and No. 15 VT).
Men's Soccer
On the men's side, the No. 12 Hoos won their third straight game, shutting out BC 2-0. Freshman Will Bates extended his scoring streak to four games, netting the game-winning goal in the 58th minute. Brian Ownby had the Cavaliers' other goal, while Neil Barlow assisted on each.
The Cavaliers (10-3-1, 3-3 ACC) earned three points toward their standing in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and won their third-straight game. With the loss, Boston College's record went to 9-7, 3-3 in the league. A crowd of 1,610 was at Klöckner Stadium.
"I think that was our most complete 90 minutes of the year," said Virginia head coach George Gelnovatch. "We defended well and converted on our scoring chances."
The teams played to a scoreless first half, with the Cavaliers holding a 9-5 advantage in shots. Bates scored the difference-maker in the 58th minute, taking control of a through ball by Barlow and finishing hard to the near post from six yards out.
This Saturday, the Hoos travel to No. 5 Maryland to take on the Terrapins at 7:30 p.m. Again, to give you a sense of how tough the conference is, there are six teams in the top 20 nationally (No. 3 Wake, No. 4 UNC, No. 5 UMD, No. 12 UVA, No. 14 NC State, and No. 19 Duke). Virginia is currently 4th in the ACC standings.
"I think that was our most complete 90 minutes of the year," said Virginia head coach George Gelnovatch. "We defended well and converted on our scoring chances."