Following a painful loss to No. 3 North Carolina Friday night, Virginia came out with something to prove Sunday afternoon against Wake Forest.
But after a scoreless regulation in which the No. 9 Cavs controlled play, Deacon forward Joline Charlton broke through the Cavalier defense and beat goalie Julie Harris to give the No. 11 Demon Deacons a 1-0 victory.
"If you watch the first half, the second half and the overtime, the result is maddening," Cav Coach April Heinrichs said. "The best team didn't win" yesterday.
Despite being held scoreless in regulation, Virginia (11-6, 4-3 ACC) had several scoring opportunities. However, the Cavs failed to capitalize and Wake Forest (11-4, 4-2) gained momentum as the game progressed. During overtime Charlton broke through the Cav defense and slipped a well-placed shot past Harris.
"The defender got turned around and lost track of the ball, and I just picked it up, shot and scored," Charlton said. "Definitely the biggest goal I've scored in my life."
"It was a great shot on her part, she just tucked it right in," Harris said. "There really wasn't much I could do."
Throughout the chilly afternoon, the Cavaliers had their chances. The Virginia forward tandem of Angela Hucles and Jill Maxwell applied pressure but was unable to beat Deacon goalie Erin Regan. Virginia's best opportunity may have come with 17 minutes left in the first half when first-year Meredith Rhodes struck a solid ball that caromed off the crossbar.
"The first half was textbook soccer in the attacking half of the field," Heinrichs said. "You don't get points for textbook soccer; you don't get points for possession. You get points for stuffing it in the back of the net."
The disappointing loss in overtime came on the heels of Friday's 2-0 defeat at the hands of North Carolina. In the match against the Tar Heels, the Cavaliers also generated several scoring opportunities but were unable to find the net.
North Carolina drew first blood when Anne Remy took a Meredith Florance pass at the 11-minute mark and placed it in the back of the net. In the 58th minute Remy sent a cross to Lorrie Fair, a member of the United States Women's World Cup team, who headed the ball into the corner of the goal.
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