They made it look so easy.
The Virginia women's soccer team handily defeated North Carolina-Greensboro Saturday night 6-1 in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
The Spartans came into the match already the underdog. They played minus star goalkeeper Kathryn Clewley, who was attending Canadian National Team camp. And unlike the Cavs (11-7-1), who had a week of rest thanks to a first-round bye, UNC-Greensboro (14-8-1) was exhausted after playing four games in just over a week, including a close 3-2 overtime win in the first round against William & Mary.
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"We've not had this kind of pressure at all," UNC-Greensboro coach Jack Poland said. "It was the case of a very well-rested team playing against a very fatigued team. And the team that clearly was more technical, more athletic and more rested won."
Virginia's eagerness to play was apparent early and continued until the end of the match. The Cavs tallied their first goal in the 10th minute when wing midfielder Erin Englehardt challenged a Spartan defender for a cross from fellow Virginia wing Laura Gaworecki. UNC-Greensboro defender Meredith Seawell knocked the ball into her own net in an attempt to keep Englehardt from firing a shot. Just over 20 minutes later, Englehardt found the back of the net on a shot from 20 yards out.
The Cavaliers finished the first half up just 2-0, but they did not relent in the second half. In the 53rd minute, freshman forward Sarah Lane put away a ball that rebounded off of Spartan goalkeeper Angie Rudy. About 25 minutes later, wing midfielder Tracey Lache scored a goal by tapping in a shot by Cav forward Darci Borski.
Senior forward Kyla Robinson scored her first career goal at 86 minutes to bring the Cavs up 5-0.
"I was saving [my goal] until the last minute" of my career, Robinson joked. "You know, I was keeping everyone in suspense."
The one scratch on Virginia's smooth win over UNC-Greensboro came with one minute remaining. On a breakaway, Spartan midfielder Megan Bynum fired a shot that went just over Cav goalkeeper Jodi Clugston. But the Cavs answered the Spartans' late goal with yet another of their own. Virginia defender Ashley Meeker found the net from 30 yards out with just 13 seconds left to play to make the final score 6-1.
The Cavs' six goals were their second-highest output of the season. Coach Steve Swanson pointed to his team's week off to explain why the Cavaliers were so dominant.
"I think one of the reasons we were happy with the bye is that it gave us a chance to rest," Swanson said. "I think that was a factor and definitely an advantage for us. We wanted to come out hard and press hard and we were able to do that."
"What we came up against tonight was a buzzsaw," Poland said.
With the victory over the Spartans, Virginia advances to the third round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cavs will face fifth-seeded North Carolina in Chapel Hill Saturday. The No. 8 Tar Heels bowled over Wake Forest 5-0 in the second round and have gone four straight games without giving up a goal.
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