No. 3 Virginia field hockey began ACC play Friday with a matchup against a faltering No. 13 Boston College squad at Turf Field. The Cavaliers (6-0-0, 1-0, ACC) have begun the year with five consecutive wins, while the Eagles (3-4, 0-1, ACC) lost their last three heading into the matchup. However, this did not deter Boston College — they gave Virginia everything they had, but the Cavaliers ultimately triumphed, scraping out a hard fought 2-0 win.
“It was a 50-50 game,” Coach Ole Keusgen said. “It was a dirty looking game.”
Virginia opened the scoring after freshman forward Riley Savage won the Cavaliers a corner with under a minute left in the first quarter. Freshman midfielder Mary Adams took the corner, passing it in to her fellow midfielder, senior Lauren Kennah, who set up for junior midfielder Mia Abello to rifle a shot towards the net. Although the shot was stopped by a Boston College defender, it deflected off of a foot, awarding the Cavaliers another corner. They ran the same play, this time achieving a different result — Abello’s shot whizzed past the Eagles’ goalkeeper.
The second and third periods saw Boston College on the offensive but to no avail. The Eagles managed to outshoot the Cavaliers six to two, giving junior goalkeeper Nilou Lempers a workout. She collected five saves in the process and preserved Virginia’s one goal lead despite all the action. Both teams amped up their physicality as well, with whistles being sounded nearly every minute.
Going into the fourth, the Cavaliers led 1-0, but Keusgen was not satisfied.
“I didn’t like how often they had good looks inside our defensive 25,” he said after the game. “We’ll have to figure that one out.”
Boston College would continue that trend in the fourth, immediately getting on the attack. Within a minute, Lempers was tested again with a tough shot that she fended off with a knee. The Eagles would stay on the offensive, keeping the ball in the attacking half for much of the period. Virginia looked to attack at every available opportunity, but could not turn the Eagles’ aggressiveness against them.
With under 2:30 to play, Boston College’s sophomore forward, Ava Meehan, received a yellow card, making things even more difficult for the trailing Eagles. The Cavaliers attempted to hold the ball and wind the clock down, while Boston College traded their goalie for an extra field player. Sensing an opening, junior forward Emma Wachtilla dashed through the remaining defenders and fired a backhand into the empty net. The goal gave Virginia the cushion it needed to secure the team’s sixth consecutive win.
The Cavaliers suit up for their next ACC matchup Sunday against No. 4 Syracuse. The game will take place at 12 p.m. and can be streamed on ACCNX.
Read More
Volleyball beats Ohio State after tumultuous five sets
By Lauren Halak | 8 hours agoVirginia defeated the Buckeyes for the first time.
With clear goals, Annabelle Xu prepares for her biggest season yet
By Thomas Baxter | 13 hours agoShe knows now that she wants to try to play professionally.
On delirious night, men’s soccer topples No. 1 Wake Forest
By Michael Liebermann | Yesterday"Just buzzing."
