Jablonowski and Hopkins Score Two, No. 5 UVA Women's Soccer Downs No. 23 Memphis 5-0
Brianna Jablonowski had two goals and an assist to lead No. 5 Virginia to a 5-0 win over No. 23 Memphis.
Olivia Taylor/Virginia Athletics
The Cavaliers are beginning to find their groove.
For the second time this season, the Virginia women's soccer team faced a ranked opponent, another tough early-season test for the Cavaliers in non-conference play.
The Hoos passed this test with flying colors.
Behind two goals from Brianna Jablonowski and another two from Haley Hopkins, No. 5 UVA women's soccer knocked off No. 23 Memphis 5-0 on Sunday night at Klockner Stadium.
For all the fireworks that would take place late in the game, it seemed initially that the first half would go by with no goals scored. The Cavaliers had a few chances to strike, but none materialized into threatening shots on goal.
Finally, in the 43rd minute, Maggie Cagle found Brianna Jablonowski outside the box. Jablonowski reversed field and freed herself for a shot from a few feet beyond the box. Her shot was an absolute laser beam and was right on target, finding the top right corner of the goal just past the outstretched arm of Memphis goalkeeper Sarah Bozeman. It was the first-career goal for the junior forward Jablonowski and gave the Cavaliers a critical 1-0 advantage heading into halftime.
Virginia stayed aggressive to start the second half and more offensive opportunities came for Hoos as the Tigers started to push up to try to find an equalizer. UVA outshot Memphis 8-4 in the second half and 12-7 for the match.
In the 60th minute, the Cavaliers were the benefactors of a replay review that led to their second goal. Memphis was whistled for a foul for a hard tackle at the edge of the box. The initial call was for a free kick just outside the box, but the official reviewed the play and determined that the foul occurred inside the box and awarded a penalty kick for Virginia. Haley Hopkins, who has already scored a couple of PK goals this season, stepped up and cashed in on the opportunity, firing her shot just inside the right post to make it 2-0.
About 15 minutes later, Hopkins found the back of the net again. Lia Godfrey sent a beautiful long pass to Alexa Spaanstra on the left wing. Spaanstra made a great run up the left side on the fast break and then fed an accurate pass to the middle of the field that met Hopkins in stride. Hopkins deposited the ball in the back right of the net for her second goal. This was the second multi-goal game of the season for Hopkins, who now has seven goals on the young season.
The match turned into a rout in the final minutes as UVA added two more goals in the last five minutes of play. Memphis played Virginia tough for most of the match, but the late goals made the score much more lopsided.
What was already a great night for Brianna Jablonowski turned into a fantastic night in the final moments. First, she sent a brilliant through ball behind the defense to Sarah Brunner, who finished to make it 4-0 with just over four minutes to play.
Two minutes later, Jablonowski scored again off of an assist from Meredith McDermott, giving Jablonowski two goals and an assist on the night. Hear from Brianna Jablonowski after her career performance in the video below:
That goal put the finishing touches on a strong 5-0 victory for the Cavaliers. The UVA defense, anchored by goalkeeper Cayla White, have now recorded five-consecutive shutouts since surrendering a late goal to George Mason in the season-opener.
Now 6-0 on the season, Virginia remains at home for the final two matches of non-conference play next weekend. UVA hosts Oregon State on Thursday at 6pm and VCU on Sunday at 2pm.
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