Monday Motivation: HOOS GOING BOWLING, Y’ALL

We’re back after a short hiatus, and what a week to return. THE VIRGINIA FOOTBALL TEAM IS BOWL ELIGIBLE. IN THE FIRST WEEK OF NOVEMBER. PLAN THE PARADE. While the Hoos were crushing it on the gridiron, there was tons of action around the Cavalier sports world, so let’s get to it!

Rapid Fire

-Virginia Baseball alum Derek Fisher is a World Series CHAMPION!! The Houston Astros defeated Chris Taylor and the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 7, 5-1, giving Fisher a ring and a pretty sweet view of the parade through Houston.

Congrats, Derek!!

-The #16 Men’s Soccer team is still in contention for the ACC title as the Hoos picked up a 4-0 win over Boston College in the first round and defeated #6 Louisville in penalty kicks (more on that later).

Against Boston College, Virginia scored all four of their goals in the first half. Pablo Aguilar notched two goals in the contest, and an own goal and a gorgeous strike by Edward Opoku rounded out the scoring.

If you don’t want to watch the full highlights, just check out this finish by Opoku on Virginia’s fourth and final goal.

Daaaaaaaamn.

-A huge welcome to the Virginia Volleyball team for their first appearance in Monday Motivation as the Hoos picked up a 3-0 win over Clemson and a 3-1 victory over Georgia Tech this past week.

Check out the highlights from the Clemson victory:

Next up, Virginia heads to Louisville and Notre Dame. Way to go, Hoos!

-Another newcomer to the recap: Virginia Squash! The #13 ranked women and #17 ranked men kicked off their inaugural varsity season this past week. The Virginia ladies are off to a 2-0 start on the season with 8-1 wins over Dickinson and Franklin and Marshall, while the men earned a 5-4 upset over #15 Franklin and Marshall.

Next up, the women will host Stanford while the men welcome Penn.

-The #4 Virginia Field Hockey team will be hosting the first and second round of the NCAA tournament. Virginia will face Princeton on Saturday, November 11 at 2pm, and - if they win - will face the winner of North Carolina and St. Joseph’s on Sunday.

That’s a tough draw for Tara Vittese & Co. as UNC has beaten Virginia twice this season already (both with a score of 4-0) and account for two of the Hoos’ four losses. Get out and get loud to support the Cavaliers!

-Oh, hey, Joe Harris! #swoon.

-Virginia Wrestling had an outstanding showing in the season-opening Clarion Open with five wrestlers placing in the event. First year Louie Hayes and redshirt third year Will Schany each won their weight class in the event. Head Coach Steve Garland was pretty pumped.

Next up, Virginia will head to the Journeymen Duals in Albany, NY next weekend.

-Both the #14 Women’s and #25 Men’s Virginia Swim and Dive teams swept Duke in their home-opener this past weekend. The Hoos won 19 events in the meet, and are both 4-0 so far in new head coach Todd DeSorbo’s first season at the helm.

-Former UVA superstar running back (and current Chicago Bear) Taquan “Smoke” Mizzell had an extremely creative gender reveal for his future baby:

A huge congrats to Smoke and his growing family. Can’t wait to see little Mizzell in orange and blue in 18 years!

-Halloween was this past week, and there were some pretty good Wahoo costumes...

LOL Sean Doolittle.

Scarecrow Mike Scott?

Most adorable Hulk ever.

-Speaking of...here’s Chris Long dancing, because why not?

Team of the Week

HOOS GOING BOWLING, BABY!!! Virginia pulled off a come-from-behind 40-36 victory over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to earn their sixth win and give them bowl eligibility for the first time since 2011.

The game had a little bit of everything: drama, intrigue, long touchdowns, a safety, a blocked punt, a pick-six, rain, two two-point conversions, a kick returned for a touchdown, and a crucial extra point that hit both uprights before falling through.

Some outstanding players offensively for the Hoos:

• Quarterback Kurt Benkert went 21-for-43 for 260 yards and three touchdowns
• Andre Levrone had two touchdowns - including the game winner - and 67 yards
• Doni Dowling hauled in one touchdown and 67 yards
• Joe Reed returned a kick 92 yards to the house
• First year kicker AJ Mejia went a perfect 3-for-3 on field goals and 3-for-3 on extra points in the game

Defensively, the Hoos played outstanding against the triple option, led by Micah Kiser and his 18 tackles. Jordan Mack (13 tackles) and Eli Hanback (10 tackles) also had double-digit tackles, and both Quin Blanding and Brenton Nelson picked off Georgia Tech’s TaQuon Marshall.

Micah Kiser (18 tackles) and Joe Reed (92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown) were recognized for their performances by the ACC.

Kiser is also now a Butkus Award semifinalist and a finalist for the Campbell Trophy (maybe he can borrow VT’s empty trophy case for all these awards).

The win pushed Virginia to 6-3 on the season, and the locker room was justifiably lit after the victory.

I mean come on...this is the literal best.

Next up, the Hoos head to Louisville to face Lamar Jackson and the Cardinals. The game will be televised on ESPNU at 3:30.

Wahoo of the Week

A huge congrats to Men’s Soccer goalkeeper Jeff Caldwell for his first StLMMWotW award for his performance in the ACC tournament semifinal game against Louisville. The Hoos and Cards played to a scoreless draw through regular and two overtime periods, forcing penalty kicks. Then Caldwell stepped up in a big way.

Total boss move. He finished with four saves in the game. In PKs, Virginia got goals from Sergi Nus, Pablo Aguilar, and Joe Bell before first year Nathaniel Crofts Jr. scored the game winning penalty kick.

Check out the full highlights below:

The Hoos will now play Notre Dame in the ACC tournament semifinals on Wednesday in Charlottesville (thanks to ND upsetting two-seed North Carolina). Game is scheduled for 7pm.

Go HOOS!!