The No. 22 Virginia men’s soccer team won 2-0 Friday night at Syracuse in their first road game of the season.
Senior striker Kennedy Nwabia opened the scoring for the Cavaliers (4-0-2, 1-0-1 ACC) late in the first half with a header following a free kick by sophomore midfielder Joe Bell. Nwabia’s goal was the first of his Virginia career.
Early in the second half, sophomore forward Irakoze Donasiyano delivered a cross to sophomore forward Nathaniel Crofts, which he put away to make the score 2-0.
Sophomore goalkeeper Colin Shutler made five saves for Virginia against Syracuse (3-3, 0-2 ACC). The shutout was the fifth in six games for Virginia, as the Cavaliers have not allowed a goal for 379 consecutive minutes. The Cavaliers entered the match with the third lowest goals against average in the nation.
"I think Syracuse challenged us to a different type of game and we showed that we we're up to the challenge," Virginia head coach George Gelnovatch said. "I credit our players who were resilient with the playing conditions (wind) and the time change."
Freshman forward Daryl Dike made his first collegiate start against Syracuse before being replaced by Nwabia in the 29th minute. Dike returned in the second half and played a season-high 57 minutes.
The Cavaliers will not play again until next Friday, once again on the road. Virginia will travel to Pittsburgh for this match, which will start at 7 p.m.
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