Women's Soccer Heads to Elite 8

The Virginia Cavalier women's soccer team entered the NCAA tournament with only two losses on the season and both were to Florida State - during the regular season and again in the ACC Championship game. Other than that, they were 18-0.

So it's no surprise that they have run rampant through the opening rounds of the NCAA tournament.

It started with High Point, the winners of the Big South Conference. That game ended with an 8-0 Cavalier victory. Morgan Brian had five assists and a goal, while Morgan Reuther had a hat trick.

Then came Rutgers. That game ended in only a 3-0 Virginia win. Three different Cavaliers scored (Tina Iordanou, Makenzy Doniak and Brittany Ratcliffe) and three different Cavaliers assisted (Danielle Colaprico, Ratcliffe and Morgan Brian).

The most recent victim opponent was Kentucky. The Wildcats went down 7-0. Doniak had eight points (a school record) on 3 goals and two assists. Brian had two goal and two assists.

Through three games, the Cavaliers had 18 goals. UCLA, Virginia's opponent in the Elite 8, had 13. Texas A&M, who faces Penn State in the next round, had 14. None of the other 5 had more than 9 goals through three games.

But make no mistake, Virginia has its hands full, playing at UCLA on Friday at 8pm (Eastern). The Bruins are undefeated on the season with only two ties to blemish their record. The two ties were to Arizona State and North Carolina - both tournament teams who have already been eliminated.

Florida State will face South Carolina earlier the same day and Florida will face Stanford a little later in the day. Penn State and Texas A&M take the pitch the next day in the final quarterfinal.

Go Hoos!