Cavaliers Defeat American 2-0
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CHARLOTTESVILLE – The No. 16 Cavalier women’s soccer team extended its unbeaten streak to seven games with a 2-0 victory over American Sunday afternoon at Klöckner Stadium. With the victory, Virginia closes out its non-conference schedule with a 5-1-2 record.
“We are excited to get this victory,” said head coach Steve Swanson. “A lot of teams come in here and with a lot to prove and we know we are going to get their best shot. American was extremely organized, defended very well and looked to counter. We were able to break them down a couple of times in the second half to get the win.”
Virginia dominated the first half of play, outshooting the Eagles (4-4-0) 10-1 in the first half, but were unable to capitalize. The Cavaliers had two golden chances late in the first half as Sinead Farrelly (Havertown, Pa.) rattled the crossbar with her long-distance strike and Katie Starsia’s (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) shot in the final seconds of the half was saved off the line by an American defender.
In the second half it didn’t take long for the Cavaliers to strike, taking the lead in the 48th minute. Farrelly collected a loose ball just outside the box and fired a shot into the upper corner for her fourth goal of the season. Virginia doubled its lead in the 89th minute when Meghan Lenczyk (McLean, Va.) headed home a cross from Lindsey Miller (Nashua, N.H.) for her team-leading sixth goal of the season.
Virginia outshot American 17-6 in the contest and had a 2-1 corner kick advantage. Chantel Jones (Midlothian, Va.) made three saves for the Cavaliers while posting her third shutout of the season. Arianna Efstathiou made six saves for American.
“We are ready to get into ACC play this week,” said Swanson. “Every game is a challenge and we have to be ready to open league play on the road on Thursday. We are looking forward to it. We just need to continue to build and improve with each game as we have been doing in the non-conference schedule.”
The Cavaliers open ACC play on Thursday night as they visit NC State. Game time in Raleigh is slated for 7 p.m.
VIRGINIA 2, AMERICAN 0
American (4-4-0) 0 0 0
#16 Virginia (5-1-2) 0 2 2
Scoring Summary
UVa. Sinead Farrelly 4 (unassisted) 48’
UVa. Meghan Lenczyk 6 (L. Miller 2) 89’
Shots: UVa 17, AU 6
Corners: UVa 2, AU 1
Saves: UVa 3 (Jones 3), AU 7 (Efstathiou 6, Team 1)
Fouls: UVa 7, AU 5
Weather: 70 degrees, cloudy
Attendance: 902
Game Notes: Lindsey Miller made her first career start and became the 16th different Cavalier to start a game this year … The Cavaliers used their seventh different starting lineup in eight games this year.