No. 23 Virginia Battles No. 5 Maryland to 3-3 Draw
Oct. 11, 2013
| Video Highlights | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The 23rd-ranked Virginia men’s soccer team played No. 5 Maryland to a 3-3 draw on a wet Friday evening at Klöckner Stadium. The teams combined for six goals over the first 27 minutes during a manic stretch before the defenses settled in and kept the game scoreless over the final 83 minutes.
Both teams extended their unbeaten streaks to eight games. Virginia is now 6-3-3 (2-2-3 ACC), while the Terrapins are 5-2-5 (4-0-3 ACC).
With six goals between the two sides, the game marked the highest-scoring UVa-Maryland contest since the Cavaliers topped the Terps, 4-2, on Sept. 11, 1994, a span of 29 matches between the long-time rivals.
Todd Wharton (So., Glen Allen, Va.), Marcus Salandy-Defour (So., Kensington, Md.) and Patrick Foss (Fr., South Riding, Va.) each scored for the Cavaliers, while reigning MAC Hermann honoree Patrick Mullins had a big night for the Terrapins with a pair of penalty-kick goals as well as an assist.
Virginia out-shot Maryland 19-15, while the Terrapins held an 8-7 edge in shots on goal. UVa goalkeeper Jeff Gal (R-So., Bartlett, Ill.) made five saves, while Maryland keeper Zack Steffen saved four shots on goal. UVa held an 8-5 advantage in corner kicks and was whistled for 20 fouls, compared to 18 for Maryland.
The first five shots in the game resulted in goals. Maryland scored just 1:11 into the contest when Mullins sent a cross into the six-yard box from just inside the goal line and found the head of Tsubasa Endoh, who scored inside the far post.
Virginia countered just a minute and 10 seconds later. Following a Foss free kick, the Maryland defense failed to clear the ball and it caromed out to Wharton, who cranked a low shot from the top of the box inside the far post for his second goal of the season.
Virginia scored again in the fifth minute when Jordan Allen (Fr., Rochester, N.Y.) sent a ball across to Salandy-Defour, who deftly worked through the Maryland defenders and into the box to get a one-on-one situation with Steffan. He buried the shot to the far end of the net over Steffan for his second score of the year.
Mullins gave the Terps the lead back with a pair of penalty-kick goals just over a minute and a half apart. In the 18th minute, following a bad giveaway by the Cavaliers just inside the midfield line, Mullins worked his way just inside the box, where he was fouled and awarded a PK, which he converted.
In the 20th minute Mullins powered into the box from the right flank near the goal line and was taken down to once again earn a penalty kick. Despite Gal guessing correctly, Mullins slipped the shot past him, giving Maryland a 3-2 edge.
Virginia scored the tying goal in the 27th minute. After a Maryland foul deep in the Cavaliers’ third of the field, Foss launched a free kick in from the right flank, scoring just inside the far post. It marked his second score of the year.
After the madness of the first 27 minutes, things settled down the rest of the way, although both teams had their share of chances. UVa nearly took the lead in the 39th minute when an Eric Bird (Jr., Virginia Beach, Va.) shot pulled Steffen off his line, but the Ryan Zinkhan (Jr., Fredericksburg, Va.) shot also went wide.
Maryland put a pair of shots on goal in the final five minutes of the second half, with Gal saving each one.
Virginia hits the road for its next two matches. The Cavaliers take a week off from competition before traveling to Virginia Tech next Friday (Oct. 18) for a 7 p.m. match. UVa travels to Notre Dame on Oct. 26 before returning home Oct. 29 to take on UNC Greensboro.