[caption id="attachment_30723" align="alignleft" width="230" caption="Freshman defender Emily Carrollo played for 77 minutes against Virginia Tech and took two shots against the Hokies.
[caption id="attachment_30678" align="alignleft" width="286" caption="Senior forward Caitlin Miskel scored her first goal of the season against Clemson in Sunday's home game.
[caption id="attachment_30600" align="alignleft" width="298" caption="Senior midfielder Jess Rostedt scored the Cavaliers' backbreaking second goal against Clemson in Sunday's victory at home, Virginia's first ACC win.
[caption id="attachment_30504" align="alignleft" width="211" caption="Sophomore Chantel Jones is fourth in the ACC in both goals against average and save percentage.
With this past week free of matchups and its ACC schedule just around the corner, the Virginia women's soccer team was hoping to use the extra rest time to build momentum against American in its third straight home game.
After playing a solid game Sunday against Seton Hall, Virginia will enjoy the longest break from competition it has had since the season's first game. "I think this week has been very good so far and will be good in terms of trying to get better as a team and having the opportunity to do that," Virginia coach Steve Swanson said.
[caption id="attachment_30159" align="alignleft" width="228" caption="Junior midfielder Sinead Farrelly scored on a header in the 65th minute of No.
Virginia returned from a tournament in Arizona this week 3-1-1 after accruing a win and a tie against Arizona and Arizona State, respectively.
[caption id="attachment_30029" align="alignleft" width="231" caption="Junior midfielder Sinead Farrelly, who frequently played at the forward position last year, will lead the midfield in 2009.
[caption id="attachment_29849" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Freshman forward Caroline Miller scored one of Virginia's five goals against Liberty, contributing to the Cavaliers' impressive offensive attack over the weekend.
[caption id="attachment_29801" align="alignleft" width="199" caption="Sophomore forward Lauren Alwine led Virginia in 2008 with 14 assists.
[caption id="attachment_29755" align="alignleft" width="218" caption="Sophomore defender Katie Carr did not start a single game last season, but this fall, she could be asked to step up into a more pivotal role for the inexperienced Cavalier backline.
Every season, collegiate athletic programs across the country cope with losing talent and experience to graduation. "It's one of the challenges we face as coaches because just when you feel like they are coming together after four years they have to leave," women's soccer coach Steve Swanson said. How much a team is affected from losing experienced players may vary from season to season, but inevitably, there is no such thing as a "contract extension" in Division I. The women's soccer team said goodbye to seven seniors last year - most notably senior defender and two-time first team All-American Nikki Krzyik.
