Yesterday afternoon, a large Virginia crowd ready for an upset welcomed top-ranked Wake Forest to Charlottesville for an in-conference battle. For the second game in a row, however, the young Cavaliers failed to live up to their potential in a narrow 3-2 loss.
It did not take long for Wake Forest (15-2, 0-3 ACC) to burst onto the scoreboard with consecutive goals from forwards Maeke Boreel, Tamar Meijer and Kelly Dostal. But the No. 16 Cavaliers (10-8, 2-2) were not ready to give up, despite an early 3-0 deficit.
From the game's outset, the Virginia defenders individually played better than the early score represented. In the first 10 minutes alone, sophomore back Erin Hayes and goalkeeper Logan Carr combined to halt Wake Forest pressure three times. Hayes and senior Dana Anderson stood out throughout the afternoon for their play combating a number of sharp Deacon passes.
"There were two or three girls that we were trying to take out of the game," Virginia back Katie Jo Gerfen said. "We were trying to put on tight pressure -- wherever they went, Erin and Dana went with them. They did an excellent job."
The Cavaliers fought back late in the first half to earn several opportunities on the offensive side of the pitch. Virginia jumped onto the scoreboard seven minutes before the break on a short corner goal from junior midfielder Katie Phillips.
Entering halftime, the Demon Deacons held a 3-1 lead. But the battle was only now really beginning.
With 28:30 remaining in the contest, the Cavaliers managed to narrow the Wake lead to 3-2. Junior back Biffy Cornelison controlled the ball in front of the cage and took a shot that was fended off by Deacon goalkeeper Kristina Gagliardi, but rebounded by freshman midfielder Megan Ponessa for the score.
A war of attrition waged on the field, with the score at a standstill until the final six minutes of play. As the last 10 seconds expired, Virginia had one final desperate scoring attempt but fell short as Wake took the ball back just outside the 21-meter circle.
For the second week in a row, Virginia showed that they are somehow just short of a 2004 win in the ACC. The Cavaliers exhibit glimpses of their true potential, but say they need to attack from the start of every game to be in contention as play progresses.
"We really have been getting better game by game," Virginia coach Jessica Wilk said. "That is what's important, that you are seeing growth in your team."
As they prepare for the final game of the regular season, the Cavaliers should certainly benefit from the experiences of the last two weeks. It will be seen next week at Duke whether Virginia can continue to improve and earn that elusive ACC victory.
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