Q & A With Felipe Libreros

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Junior midfielder Felipe Libreros (Oldsmar, Fla.), who is in his first season as a Cavalier after transferring from South Florida, recently checked in with VirginiaSports.com to discuss the season so far. The Cavaliers head to Duke for a Saturday night match in Durham, N.C. Kickoff is 7 p.m.

Question: How is the team’s preparation for its ACC opener at Duke going?
Libreros: We’ve been preparing ourselves since the preseason, so it’s not like we change our preparation depending on who we’re playing. We’ve been practicing very hard and I think the work we’ve put in is going to show in the game. And it’s not just this week, it started a long time ago.

Question: You transferred from the University of South Florida. What went into your decision to attend UVa?
Libreros: I was looking at a few different schools. Diego Restrepo was one of my good friends while he was at South Florida, so I talked to him about UVa. The coaches were interested, so in my mind the first option was Virginia. Even though when I decided to come here, they hadn’t won the national championship yet. So that was great when they won and I thought ‘wow, that’s where I’m going next year.’

Question: You scored a goal in one of the team’s exhibition contests and have seen playing time in both regular-season games so far. How does it feel to contribute right away?
Libreros: I always want to contribute to the team. The coaches have given me all the opportunities in the world to succeed here. Throughout the spring and the beginning of the fall, a lot of people were helping me out. I’m just giving a little bit back to all those people that gave me so much help. I want to help the team and I really feel home here at UVa.

Question: What were your first impressions of playing in Klöckner Stadium?
Libreros: It was awesome. I’m not used to having that many fans at a game. The stadium is great and the field is huge. Everything is great!

Question: What is your favorite thing about Charlottesville as a relative newcomer to the city?
Libreros: I’ve been used to living in really big cities, so this is a smaller town but I like it. Everything is close, and it seems like people know each other wherever you go.

Question: Have you been able to get out and watch any of the other fall sports compete?
Libreros: I watched the football game on Saturday, and I go to the women’s soccer games. The atmosphere here is great, all the people that come to the games, it’s amazing how people are so into UVa athletics here.

Question: What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
Libreros: I like to play video games and do my homework.