FAIRFAX, Va. – Maggie Cagle delivered a brace and three different Cavaliers scored as No. 5 Virginia (3-0-1) went on the road and claimed a 4-0 victory at George Mason (0-4-0) on Sunday (Aug. 27).

HOW IT HAPPENED
Virginia struck in the sixth minute as Talia Staude found Yuna McCormack on a run in behind the defense down the left side. McCormack then slotted it back across the box to Maggie Cagle for the strike and the opening score.

The Hoos’ second goal came in the 27th minute as Samar Guidry found Yuna McCormack out wide on the right side. McCormack then sent it over the top of the defense to Talia Staude who headed it into the upper corner of the back post.

Cagle struck for the second time in the 58th minute. A goal kick to midfield was headed back toward goal and flicked on by Meredith McDermott ahead to Cagle who picked it up on the run and fired it past the keeper for the 3-0 lead.

The final goal came in the 88th minute as Sarah Brunner served a ball into the six where Allie Ross got up past her defender enough to head it down into the goal for the score.

NOTES ON THE GAME

  • Virginia improved to 16-8-3 all-time against the Patriots of George Mason and have won 12 straight in the series.
  • Maggie Cagle tallied her second brace of the season and has hit four game winners in her six career goals.
  • Yuna McCormack tallied two assists on the night for her first multiple-assist game.
  • The three points from Talia Staude is a career high as it’s her first career game with a goal and an assist.
  • Victoria Safradin made her collegiate debut with the start in goal and posted her first shutout.
  • Virginia has now posted four consecutive shutouts to open the 2023 season.
  • It’s the third time in four outings the Hoos have held an opponent to two shots or less.

FROM HEAD COACH STEVE SWANSON
“We are happy to get the result today on the road. I thought we did some good things on the attacking end and finished some nice goals. We still have improvement that we must make on both sides of the ball, but we are progressing as a team and that is most important at this stage in the season.”

UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS
Virginia returns home next week for a pair of matches. The Cavaliers will host West Virginia at 6 p.m. on Thursday (Aug. 31) as part of a doubleheader with the Virginia men’s team. The Hoos will then host VCU at 2 p.m. on Sunday (Sept. 3).