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Yes, the football team is looking more and more like a disaster, but the great thing about UVA sports is that there's always some successful team to follow when your first option comes unglued like a second grade science project. In the fall, it means we head to the soccer pitch.
Men's Soccer
Last Season:
The men's soccer team parlayed a solid, but somewhat underwhelming regular season into a low seed in the NCAA tournament, and then stymied and frustrated their opponents on the way to the program's seventh national title.
This Season:
The men started out the season ranked #2 in the country, which may have been a reflection of their status as the defending national champions, and less an objective evaluation of their talent. The Hoos dropped a bit after settling for a tie against Tulsa in their second game, and another tie against Duke in their ACC opener. Virginia went into Friday's road match against #14 Notre Dame at 5-0-2, only to get rocked by the Irish 3-1. Notre Dame is a very good team that was ranked #2 a week earlier, and obviously dialed it up after several unexpected losses. The Hoos are now 5-1-2, and 0-1-1 in the ACC.
Up Next:
Virginia returns home Tuesday for an in-state showdown with George Washington, and then takes on ACC rival Louisville Friday. Both games are scheduled for 7:00pm starts at Klockner Stadium.
Women's Soccer
Last Season:
The women piled up a 20-3 record, but the 3 losses were all 1-0 losses to Florida State - in the regular season, ACC championship, and NCAA championship. In a twisted way, the men's title was a mirror image of the women's final, with a defensively stout team holding off the more offensively talented squad.
This Season:
The women started the season #2 in the nation, and looked the part early, rolling to four straight wins to open their campaign. A tie at Pepperdine on short rest after a thrilling win over UCLA was the first non-win, but the women racked up three more shutout wins to ascend to #1 in the nation, only to lose a double overtime match to Notre Dame (the Irish really have Virginia's number this year, don't they?). The women won yesterday over Duke to get to 8-1-1 overall, and 2-1 in the ACC.
Up Next:
Virginia heads to Raleigh, NC on Friday for a match against NC State.