Despite falling to No. 11 Richmond, the No. 10 Virginia field hockey team will probably hold onto a high ranking according to the STX/NFHCA poll. However, the Cavaliers' 5-2 record is more deceiving than is appears and deserves to be taken with a grain of salt.
Virginia is scheduled to play four ranked teams this season, all currently ranked within the top 12. Despite the losses to No. 1 Michigan State Sept. 5 and Richmond Wednesday, Virginia has shown the ability to hang with the ranked opponents on their schedule. Based on the box score, it might have seemed like a nasty defeat to Michigan State, but the breakdown of the stats reveal otherwise.
Although the final score was 6-2 and Virginia was outshot, the Cavaliers dominated Michigan State on short corners and defensive saves. The statistics show that shots are important in establishing an offense and keeping the pressure off of the defense for the Cavaliers. By keeping the number of shots even with their opponents, Virginia's chances of winning have improved. Against Richmond, Virginia was outshot 20 to five and lost. However, when Virginia played Boston College, the statistics were very close, especially in the shots category, where Virginia only managed one less than the Eagles. The Cavaliers were able to win that game 4-3.
"We can't just keep having these losses by one goal -- we have to get on the other side of the scoreboard," senior goalkeeper Logan Carr said.
Defense was also a problem in the games against Michigan State and Richmond. More shots had to be defended by Carr, who won the goalkeeper battle after splitting time with sophomore Katherine Blair. Carr, who came through in the win against Boston College, kept her team in the game against Richmond. She had to defend 20 shots against the Spiders. The Cavaliers will look to keep Carr less busy this weekend as will as improving their discipline.
"We need to work on a lot of our individual defense, our ability to combine, in terms of our attack, and just being a lot more disciplined," Virginia coach Jessica Wilk said.
This weekend, Virginia takes on No. 3 North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the first of two matchups against the ACC rival. With a more balanced attack, Virginia will be in a better position to steal a win to pull even in their record so far against top-ranked teams this year.
"It's going to be a battle," Wilk said. "Carolina is ranked third in the country, it's always tough down there, but I look forward to the challenge. That's what sport is all about -- you come away with a loss, you hopefully learn and grow and get better, and look forward to the next challenge."
Maybe the lessons Virginia learned in the Richmond game will help them to defeat North Carolina and the other ranked opponents on their schedule.
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