Men's and women's soccer’s memorable seasons ended in the same fate
(12/25/25 5:22pm)
Both season-ending matches followed the same formula
Serving the University Community Since 1890
Use the fields below to perform an advanced search of The Cavalier Daily's archives. This will return articles, images, and multimedia relevant to your query. You can also try a Basic search
1000 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
Both season-ending matches followed the same formula
The year is 1973. Richard Nixon is president, gas costs just 36 cents per gallon and neither Virginia Coach Tony Elliott nor Missouri Coach Eliah Drinkwitz have been born. Yet, that is the only time before the 2025 Gator Bowl that their two programs have met on the gridiron.
On a grey morning at the Rivanna Reservoir, mist sitting low on the water and the shoreline still quiet, the Virginia women's rowing team slips out of the dock with only the rhythmic sound of oars disturbing the stillness. In one stern of one shell sits sophomore coxswain Brie Joe, tucked neatly behind her crew and speaking into a small microphone. Her tone is controlled, her calls precise in a way that feels almost out of place for someone only 19 years old.
6-foot-11 Jack Salt stood inside the Covenant School gymnasium Dec. 3, in a city that still feels like home away from home. The former Virginia center returned to Charlottesville not as a player wearing 33 in white, navy blue and orange, or as the defensive anchor of a national championship team. Instead, he returned as a basketball mentor, bringing a group of Australian high schoolers to the United States to learn about the sport.
Over the past two decades, Virginia has seen five basketball coaches, four football coaches, two athletic directors and 22 NCAA championships. More broadly, there has been a dramatic shift across the country in how athletic programs strategize — whether it be increased budgets, NIL, the transfer portal or the impact of social media on recruiting.
Since the addition of field hockey to NCAA sports in 1981, the circle of championship-winning programs has remained small. For all its pedigree and despite six semifinal appearances, Virginia field hockey has yet to reach a Final Four match, let alone join that circle of championship programs. And this year was no different.
Virginia Athletics announced Monday that the Cavaliers will play the 2026 football season opener not at Scott Stadium, but at Milton Santos Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Aug. 29.
Virginia volleyball is in the midst of a 25-year drought in which it has not appeared in an NCAA Tournament.
Junior linebacker Maddox Marcellus was not going to be a starter entering this season. Marcellus himself was well aware of this.
Editor’s note: This article is co-authored by Ryan Weiner, a senior sports writer for The Cavalier Daily, and Thomas Hughes, a Virginia Tech sophomore and the lead editor for Virginia Tech On SI. Readers can find a copy of this article on the Virginia Tech On SI website as well.
The Cavaliers are approaching a turning point.
The men’s tennis program delivered one of its most dynamic performances in recent memory this weekend at the 2025 NCAA Individual Championships in Orlando, Fla., where senior Mans Dahlberg and junior Dylan Dietrich captured the doubles national title and the Cavaliers produced several statement singles runs that reaffirmed the program’s standing among the nation’s best college tennis programs.
Thanksgiving week is a time for togetherness and love across the Commonwealth — except for on the football field.
For the first time, the No. 12 Virginia men’s swimming team entered a postseason-caliber bracket challenge of the regular season this weekend in Knoxville, Tenn. In an opportunity to measure itself against three of the nation’s premier men’s programs, the Cavaliers fell short and finished fourth after dropping all three of their matches, including a 37-19 loss to Michigan in Sunday morning’s meet for third place.
In a weekend designed to test depth, nerves and a brand-new format, the Virginia women mostly made the CSCAA Dual Meet Challenge look like business as usual.
Editor's Note: This interview has been edited for grammar, length and clarity.
This week’s From the Archives looks at University fall sports’ postseason play throughout the years. These articles showcase the successful seasons and postseasons of many fall sports, including men’s soccer, women’s soccer, field hockey, cross country and volleyball. The teams competed in both the ACC and NCAA championships, demonstrating the University’s athletic achievements at the regional and national level. 1950sNov. 19, 1957“Soccermen Win Big Six Title Downing W & L”By Henry DrakeVirginia men’s soccer victory over Washington and Lee marked the first Big Six Championship for a Virginia team that season. Despite muddy conditions and a scoreless first half, the Cavaliers roared back in the third quarter and scored two goals, propelling them to a 2-0 victory. 1960sNov. 22, 1961“Soccermen Cop Title In State Tournament”By Mike HelfandVirginia men’s Soccer clinched the 1961 state championship in the final minute of play, as sophomore forward Chip Cambell edged past Lynchburg College’s goalie to score the game-winning goal. The team was seeking payback for their 4-0 loss to Lynchburg in the previous year’s tournament, and placed five men who contributed to their win on the All-State team. 1970sNov. 21, 1978“Groos paces Cav harriers to eighth place in nationals”By Chris KellyPhotos by Courtesy of SIDIn its second year as a varsity program, Virginia women’s cross country shocked everyone by placing eighth at the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women National Championships. Despite being ranked outside of the top 15 prior to the meet, Virginia was the only team to have three runners finish in the top 15, with sophomore Margaret Groos finishing in fourth place. Coach Dennis Craddock said he was thrilled with the team’s performance and was hopeful that their strong showing would help them recruit great runners for next year’s season. 1980sNov. 15, 1985“Virginia hopes to ‘stick’ Monarchs in first round”By David YalofIllustration by Doug FrenchVirginia field hockey faced a tough opponent at Old Dominion, as they hoped to defeat the reigning national champions in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. One major asset for Virginia was star senior goalkeeper Missy Farwell who the author described as “[laying] the foundation” for Virginia field hockey’s postseason games.1990sNov. 20, 1995Broncos gallop away with 1-0 victoryBy Shawn CoxVirginia women's soccer fell to Santa Clara in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, which took place at Klӧckner Stadium. A dominant showing by Santa Clara’s offense kept Virginia scoreless and led the Broncos to a 1-0 victory. This was the final game for five senior players on the Virginia team, and the loss dropped Virginia’s all-time tournament record to 1-8.2000sNov. 16, 2006“Virginia, Duke square off with ACC title hopes”By Bailey StephensAfter winning eight matches in a row, Virginia volleyball needed to beat the Blue Devils to secure their 2006 ACC regular season title. The team had lost to Duke earlier that season but felt confident in their momentum from the win streak and the recovery of two of their best players. A win would not only confirm their title, but would also help convince the NCAA selection committee that the Cavaliers deserved a bid to the national tournament.
Virginia swimming is about to enter uncharted waters. The Cavalier men’s and women’s teams will head to Knoxville, Tenn. for the inaugural CSCAA Dual Meet Challenge Friday through Sunday — a competition format set to put a tournament twist on college swimming.
Jesus De Vicente has had a long voyage in college soccer. The graduate defender has played in the architectural beauty of Valencia, the mountains of West Virginia, the nigh endless cornfields of Iowa, underneath the skyline and whipping winds of Chicago and eventually in the embrace of the Commonwealth and the nighttime lights of Klöckner Stadium.
Virginia field hockey’s season came to an end Friday, as it was unable to overcome Miami of Ohio in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cavaliers (16-2, 7-1, ACC) earned the No. 4 seed in the tournament and were runners up in the ACC Tournament, while the Redhawks (16-4, 8-1, MAC) entered as MAC champions with momentum squarely on their side.