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No. 8 Virginia Outlasts No. 12 BC in Extra Time
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CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. First-year Paige Selenski scored both goals, including the game-winner with 4:30 remaining in the second extra time session, to lift the eighth-ranked Virginia field hockey team to a 2-1 victory over No. 12 Boston College (6-2, 0-2 ACC) Friday at the Newton Campus Turf Field.
Weather conditions of heavy rain affected the playing surface and limited the speed of the ball on the turf. In the second half, standing water accumulated near the 50-yard line.
“We used the weather to our advantage,” UVa head coach Michele Madison said. “The water on the field slowed the ball down so we had to throw it into open spaces. We made that adjustment.”
“The weather didn’t really affect us,” senior defender Lucy Meyers said. “It didn’t slow us down. We stuck to the game plan. Our goal was to mark and we did that for the most part. It was a solid defensive effort.”
Selenski’s game-winning goal, her ninth score of the season, came on a pass from teammate Lauren Elstein. Elstein also assisted Selenski on her goal in the first half.
“I came out and sat down and had a drink. When I came back in the game I had so much energy,” Selenski said. “I sprinted up the field and Lauren gave me a really good pass. I just shot it.”
The game is the second straight overtime winner for Virginia, who is now 2-1 in extra time games this season.
“It was a total team effort,” Madison said. “That is what you need to get positive results. That is our focus.”
Virginia got on the board quickly, scoring in the fifth minute when Elstein intercepted a pass and fed the ball up the field to Selenski. It was just the second shot of the game for the Cavaliers.
The Eagles would tie the game with 8:23 remaining in the first half, converting on a penalty corner. Chelsey Feole tallied the score off a pass from teammate Bob Dirks.
The Virginia defense kept the Cavaliers in the game after the Eagles had a 4-0 shot advantage in the first overtime. For the game, BC outshot UVa 16-15.
Amy Desjadon improved to 4-0 in the cage this season with another solid outing. The fifth-year senior tallied nine saves in the contest.
“Amy, Floor (Vogels), Shelly (Edmonds), Rachel (Jennings) and Lucy (Meyers) kept us in it,” Madison said. “The defense kept the score at one when we had multiple opportunities. They worked hard and Desj had some key saves. Rachel had some key clears at critical moments in overtime.
Boston College also had an 8-6 advantage in penalty corners in the game.
The win was the first for Virginia over BC during the regular season since 2004. The game was a rematch from the ACC Tournament a year ago, when the Cavaliers upset BC 3-2 in extra time to move on to the semis.
Virginia wraps up its trip to Boston with a 1 p.m. game Sunday against Boston University in a neutral-site game that will be played at BC. The Cavaliers are 0-3 all-time against the Terriers.