The Virginia men’s soccer team traveled across the country to continue its quest for a national championship with a third-round match against the reigning defending national champions Stanford.
In what was a highly-anticipated match, the 12th seeded Cavaliers (11-4-5, 3-2-3 ACC) fell to the fifth-seeded Cardinal (13-3-4, 8-1-1 Pac-12), 1-0. The match lived up to its hype and was tightly-contested throughout, with college soccer’s last two national champions battling it out in a double overtime affair.
Strong defense from both teams prevented either offense from getting into a rhythm throughout the match.
Stanford outshot Virginia, 7-3, in the first half, but the Cavaliers held the edge, 3-0, in shots on goal. The second half and the first overtime period played out in similar fashion, with the score remaining 0-0 as both teams remained locked in a defensive battle.
Finally, in the 106th minute of the match, Stanford junior forward Foster Langsdorf punched in a controversial header after junior goalkeeper Jeff Caldwell was knocked to the ground for the game-winning goal, giving the Cardinals the victory. With that goal, Virginia’s 2016 season came to an end.
Stanford finished with a 17-9 edge in shots on the night. In what was largely a defensive battle, both the Cavaliers and the Cardinals only racked up four shots on goal apiece. Stanford tallied four saves to Virginia’s three.
The Cavaliers will now head into the offseason looking to improve on another strong season and get ready for 2017.
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