The No. 1 Virginia women’s soccer team concluded its final road trip of the season with a convincing win against No. 4 North Carolina, recording its 10th shutout of the season en route to a 2-0 victory.
The defending national champion Tar Heels (13-3, 7-3 ACC) have dominated head-to-head matchups between the two schools all-time, owning a 35-3-3 record against Virginia. Each of the Cavaliers’ three wins in the series have come in the past three years, however, and the team’s strong showing Sunday helped continue that trend.
Virginia (16-0, 10-0 ACC) showed off its depth in the match, as it played without star junior midfielder Morgan Brian, who was in San Antonio, Texas with the U.S. Women’s National Team. The Cavaliers were able to get off to a quick start despite Brian’s absence, with sophomore forward Brittany Ratcliffe scoring off a cross from junior forward Danielle Colaprico in the 13th minute.
The remainder of the first half was unsurprisingly a defensive struggle — both teams entered Sunday’s match with nine shutouts. The teams combined for just four shots in the first half, and things did not loosen up in the second. Virginia and North Carolina mustered just two more shots apiece until the 84th minute, when Cavalier leading scorer sophomore forward Makenzy Doniak sealed the deal for Virginia with her 12th goal of the season.
The 2-0 win marked just the second time in the last 27 years that North Carolina has lost by multiple goals, a span of nearly 700 matches. Virginia’s victory tied it with the 1990 Cavaliers for best start in school history — that streak was broken by the Tar Heels. The team’s success has not gone unnoticed nationally, as the Cavaliers have been the consensus No. 1 team for five weeks in a row.
Virginia will play its final three games of the season at Klöckner Stadium, beginning with a matchup against Miami Thursday evening.
Read More
Virginia softball fumbles last home game of the season to Virginia Tech
By Eleanor Lynch | 20 hours agoThe Hokies shut out the Cavaliers, who continue to show immense struggles at the plate.
Hoos in the NBA Playoffs
By Oliver Blair | 22 hours agoThe NBA Playoffs are tipping off imminently, and many of Virginia’s former heroes will be chasing the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
No. 5 women’s tennis closes out the regular season with back-to-back victories against No. 19 Miami and No. 23 Florida State
By Grace Gould | 2 days agoThe weekend’s victories ended what has been a very strong regular season on a high note and cemented an undefeated home record.
