The No. 6 Virginia women's soccer team downed its second in-state rival in as many weeks Friday night as a remarkable 13 players recorded a point on the way to a 9-1 home victory against Liberty.\nJunior forward Caroline Miller paced the Cavalier attack by recording the first Virginia hat trick since Sinead Farrelly scored three goals against Clemson in 2008. Miller also recorded an assist to tie the Cavalier record for most points in a game.
"It's good to see her scoring goals," coach Steve Swanson said. "That's what she does best. She's a tremendous goal scorer. She's a tremendous creator for us."
The scoring initially started slowly for Virginia (3-0-0), which needed 17 minutes before freshman midfielder Morgan Brian notched her second goal of the season. After the initial breakthrough, however, the onslaught began as the Cavaliers entered the locker room at halftime leading the Flames, 5-0.
"We were a little frazzled [at the beginning of the game] and we just had to get the game down," sophomore forward Gloria Douglas said. "We just needed to settle down and look up. Once we got that [first] goal, everything started to settle down and we got our momentum. After that we were able to score three goals really fast. To have a first goal is really crucial to our play."
After freshman defender Olivia Brannon recorded her first-career goal in the 23rd minute, Miller provided one of the most spectacular goals of the night as she juked past multiple defenders in the box and then ripped a shot past the Liberty goalkeeper.
The second half was more of the same for Miller as she scored in the 48th and 53rd minutes to increase her team-leading goal tally to four during this very young season.
The unranked Flames (0-1-0) picked up the pace during the second half and recorded five of their six total shots in the period, but they still did not provide enough defense to stop Virginia as sophomore forward Amber Fry and Douglas scored goals in the 71st and 79th minutes, respectively. Fry's goal resulted from a beautiful give-and-go with Douglas, who picked up her fourth assist of the season - already one more than she tallied all of last season.
"I've grown a lot over the spring, especially with [Swanson]," Douglas said. "Working out with the team has really allowed me to open up and get a new perspective. So I'm just playing the ball, working hard every time I get in and just making the most of my minutes."
While the Cavalier defense came close to helping senior goalkeeper Chantel Jones to her 35th career shutout, a mark that would have tied the ACC career shutout record, in the 88th minute Liberty senior forward Aimee Luurtsema got behind the backline and scored off of a nice through ball from sophomore midfielder Megan Warner.
The nine goals on the night were the most Virginia has scored in six years, matching their offensive output against Richmond in 2005. The victory also gives Swanson a 45-3-3 record against in-state foes during his tenure at Virginia.
"I think they take a lot of pride in games against Virginia schools," Swanson said. "There's a lot of pride here at [Virginia] and within the program. There's no difference when we go to face those guys. For a lot of people, we're the biggest game of the year. We understand that and we have a lot of respect for these teams. The way we played the game tonight should show Liberty how much we respect them."
Virginia's nine-game homestand continues tomorrow at 5 p.m. against St. John's. The game originally was to be played late Sunday afternoon but was rescheduled because of the threat of inclement weather from Hurricane Irene.
Read More
Leo Afonso is ascending the ranks of club soccer — and he is not done yet
By Ben Istvan | 16 hours agoVirginia's former talisman recently made waves in professional soccer with a dreamlike 17-day stretch.
Virginia softball fumbles last home game of the season to Virginia Tech
By Eleanor Lynch | YesterdayThe Hokies shut out the Cavaliers, who continue to show immense struggles at the plate.
Hoos in the NBA Playoffs
By Oliver Blair | YesterdayThe NBA Playoffs are tipping off imminently, and many of Virginia’s former heroes will be chasing the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
