Virginia Women’s Soccer Wins Season Finale, Downs Syracuse 4-0
In the end it didn’t matter.
Virginia had entered last weekend favored to win their last two games and put themselves in contention for the last spot in the ACC tournament. A disappointing draw against Boston College eliminated the Cavaliers, but ultimately, Wake Forest won their last two games. Even with a win versus BC, UVa would still have missed the tourney.
This game had all the hallmarks of a trap game. A Virginia team that had started the season ranked in the top 10 and a presumed shoo-in for the NCAA tournament had recorded a slew of mediocre results all season. Senior Day had come and gone, and Syracuse can be a bleak setting in late October. The pitch at SU Soccer Stadium may have been the slickest I have ever seen. (Seriously, I have never seen so many players go sliding, spilling and sprawling to the deck. These two teams weren’t just playing against each other, they were playing against the field.)
But for as confounding – and disappointing – as this season has been, and stop me if you’ve read this before, these women simply do not stop. They do not give up. Syracuse is bad, like dumpster-fire bad. and Virginia was on the front foot from the get-go, registering a pair of nice shots within the first four minutes.
Jill Flammia provided the spark when in the 40th minute she took a Kiki Maki pass and drove right at a rapidly retreating Cuse defense and slotted home the goal.
(For parents who have kids playing soccer, this is Exhibit 1A on how NOT to play defense. Check out the complete lack of defense from the player on Flammia’s right who first stops defending, and then actually moves away from the ball.)
In the second half Syracuse did come close to scoring off a corner as the header skidded millimeters wide of the post. Soccer is a game of inches and Virginia has been victimized all season, but on this night, the ball went wide.
Maggie Cagle broke the game open in the 57th minute converting on a penalty. Talia Staude had been fouled in the box by Syracuse keeper Shea Vanderbosch. Cagle went low and to the right. Vanderbosch went the correct way, even got both hands on the ball and yet still gave up the goal. It was demoralizing for Syracuse what with their best player allowing the goal even when guessing the right way.
The game was effectively over at that point and Virginia was running the Orange. Flammia almost scored again, Samar Guidry had a lovely shot, Cagle had a pair of shots from the top left of the box that she’s curled in many times before. Twice in two minutes I wrote in my notes: Ross => Great Shot. Great Save.
Then there was this lovely spin and shot by Meredith McDermott for the game’s third goal. McDermott has struggled to hold the ball with her back to the goal but she has a very nice spin to her right and her left foot is lethal.
The final goal was scored by Staude, fittingly in her last game for the Hoos. Staude now sits second all time for Virginia in both games played and minutes. She has been a model of consistency her entire career and it was this goal that drew the loudest cheer from the UVa bench.
Next Up: There is no next-up. Not this year, anyway. Only six teams qualify for the ACC tournament. While Virginia did finish ahead of Virginia Tech, Louisville and Duke in the ACC, Virginia missed out, finishing seventh overall. Last year the ACC placed 10 teams in the NCAA tournament. But Clemson, with an RPI of #19, NC State (#39,) Wake Forest (#45) and Virginia Tech (#46) easily dwarf Virginia’s RPI of #91. No at-large invite has ever been granted to a team with an RPI higher than #71.
Virginia’s season is unfortunately over.
I will have a full post-mortem of the season next week.
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