The struggling Virginia field hockey team hits the road again this weekend, ready to compete in a trio of games up north. The Cavaliers (5-7, 0-2 ACC) will look to accrue some late-season success and tighten up their defense in matchups against UC Davis, Princeton and No. 4 Connecticut during a four-day road stint.
After failing to find consistency during the season's early-going, the Cavaliers have looked strong on offense as of late, finding the back of the net with relative ease. But it has been the defense that has worried the team as the group has dropped five out of its last six games.
"We're putting up three and four goals on the scoreboard and walking away with six against us," coach Michele Madison said. "That's too many."
Recently, the Cavaliers have failed to shut down their opponents during the second halves of their contests, allowing their foes to take far more shots on goal. During the team's most recent game against No. 5 Maryland, it went into halftime down 3-2 but was unable to contain the Terrapin attack during the second half as Maryland outshot Virginia by a 9-3 margin.
"I think it's just that we're letting down on some basic skills," senior midfielder Alex Jahnle said. "I think there's just a slight disconnect there."
This week at practice, the team focused its efforts on shoring up the fundamentals of defending in an attempt to reduce mental mistakes and lapses in form.
"We're giving up too many corners when they get into the circle, so we definitely have to shut that down," Madison said. "Even when we make good tackles, we're getting corners against us. So we have to clean up the defense and deny their positive opportunities."
The Cavaliers' defensive work will certainly be put to the test this weekend against three competitive opponents, starting with a matchup tonight against UC Davis in Spring City, Pa. The Aggies (2-6, 1-1 NorPac) are coming off a tough loss to conference rival No. 7 Stanford. The team has struggled during the first halves of games this season, giving up 12 goals while only scoring five - a trend that may bode well for the Cavaliers who have typically outscored their opponents during the first half.
Tomorrow, the Cavaliers travel to the Garden State to take on Princeton (4-5, 2-1 Ivy League), a program which has also hit a rough patch of its own, losing four of its last six games. The Tigers, who are paced by freshman striker Allison Evans, should provide a stiff challenge for Virginia as they have held advantages against their foes in penalty corners and shots.
"We don't want to give away games to other team by giving them easy shots," Jahnle said. "We want to win games, and if we do lose, it's that the other team earned it."
Arguably the toughest test of the trip will occur Sunday against the highly-ranked Huskies (10-1, 3-0 Big East), who enter the matchup riding a four-game win streak. The No. 4 squad has dominated opponents thus far this season and only suffered a loss against No. 9 Boston College. Connecticut has fired off almost double the amount of shots as its adversaries, holding an impressive 172-89 advantage. The Huskies' ability to find a multitude of shots on goal has allowed the formidable attack to outscore opponents 36-10.
But despite the tough task that lies ahead of them, the Cavaliers remain confident in their ability to gain momentum heading into the end of the season and postseason play, especially if the defense can find its stride.
"The team keeps getting better every day ... but the competition also keeps getting better," Madison said. "We just have to keep improving things, hopefully break through and put a 'W' on the board"
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