No. 4 Ohio State (4-1)—perhaps motivated by its defeat at the hands of No. 10 Virginia Tech on Sunday—entered Monday’s bout on a mission to reverse its misfortunes and overwhelmed ninth-ranked Virginia 30-7.
This weekend, Virginia had the chance to move into the Elite Eight, and the battle-tested Cavaliers leapt at the opportunity.
Despite falling behind in the opening half and playing all but the first minute without senior midfielder Eric Bird due to a groin injury, No. 16 seed Virginia (11-6-2, 3-3-2 ACC) used a re-tinkered defense and a revitalized offense to propel itself to a 3-1 win.
It was a tale of two teams Saturday at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in Terre Haute, Indiana. The 17th-ranked Virginia women battled through adversity to claim 15th place while the 13th-ranked men, bogged down by a slow start, finished 21st.
The official results did not look overwhelmingly encouraging for Virginia after the three-day Ohio State Invitational. But since the Cavaliers only sent their divers on the weekend, the takeaways were positive thanks to impressive individual performances.
The Cavaliers defeated the Yellow Jackets, 3-1, Friday evening before falling against the Panthers, 3-1, on senior day Sunday afternoon.
The 9th-ranked Virginia wrestling team will welcome No. 4 Ohio State for a primetime showdown Monday at John Paul Jones Arena.
In a battle of the orange and blue, the Virginia women’s basketball team faced Auburn Sunday afternoon at John Paul Jones Arena.
Saturday was a great night to be a Virginia football fan, as the Cavaliers dominated Miami, 30-13.
Atkins provided a critical boost for Virginia, racking up eight points, eight rebounds and three blocks after the break. After the game, Bennett praised his most experienced Cavalier.
Virginia (5-6, 3-4 Coastal) seized a 13-7 halftime lead against the Hurricanes and only improved after the break, when the Cavaliers shut out Miami until garbage time and scored 17 points to post a 30-13 win on Senior Night.
With fans at John Paul Jones Arena screaming for the team to step on the gas in the second half, Bennett implored his team to slow down. Virginia responded with its most impressive 20 minute stretch of the season, using a more deliberate offensive approach to outscore George Washington by 21 points in the second half of its 59-42 victory.
Just when senior midfielder Kelsey LeBlanc and senior goalkeeper Jenny Johnstone thought that their collegiate careers had come to an end, they learned that together, they had earned one more honor: being selected to play in the Victory Sports Tours/NFHCA Division I Senior All-Star game.
“The Skinny” on weekend matchups for women’s basketball, swim & dive, and volleyball
Virginia cross country competes at the NCAA Championship meet this Saturday at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Indiana.
After wins against Ohio State and Radford this weekend, Virginia women’s basketball coach Joanne Boyle had already started looking ahead to improving the team for the future and its first road game this Thursday against Xavier.
The Virginia men’s soccer team last competed nearly two weeks ago in a disheartening 3-0 defeat in the ACC Quarterfinals against Notre Dame. After making it to the ACC Championship game last season, this was not the stepping-stone the Cavaliers wanted.
Following its convincing 8-0 victory last Friday, the second-seeded Virginia women’s soccer team will enjoy a week of rest before its next matchup — an invaluable asset for a Cavalier squad which has played a 20-game season and is heading into a potential Friday-Sunday, second and third round NCAA tournament schedule this weekend.
Nearly two weeks later, the Cavaliers (4-6, 2-4 ACC) prepare to host Miami (6-4, 3-3 ACC) in a must-win game this Saturday. With four losses by less than eight points, Virginia has made its days ahead more difficult. But bowl eligibility is still achievable if the team can win this week and next week vs. Virginia Tech.
Off to its first 3-0 start in coach Tony Bennett’s six-year tenure at Virginia, the No. 9 men’s basketball team will face its first true test of the season Friday when it hosts George Washington.
