Virginia Hosts No. 19 Virginia Tech in Smithfield Commonwealth Clash

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The Virginia’ mens soccer team (2-4-3, 0-2-2 ACC) is set to host No. 19 Virginia Tech (6-2-1, 1-2-0 ACC) on Friday night (Oct. 4) at Klöckner Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. on ACCNX.

How to Follow
Friday’s match against Virginia Tech will be streamed on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX) which is available on WatchESPN.com and the ESPN app for customers who have the ACC Network as part of their TV subscription. Links to both the broadcast and live stats are available at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official Twitter account (@UVAMenSoccer).

The Series with the Hokies

• The matchup will mark the 56th meeting between the Cavaliers and the Hokies in the sport of men’s soccer. Virginia holds a 43-6-6 advantage in the all-time series
• Virginia has won three of the last four meetings between the two sides including a 3-0 victory in Blacksburg a season ago.
• In 2022, Virginia won by a margin of 4-2 after going down a goal in the first half. Kome Ubogu scored on a diving header to take the lead in the second half. Paul Wiese and Triton Beauvois each notched assists in that game (9/9/22)
• The Cavaliers are 21-3-3 when facing off with Virginia Tech on their home turf.
• Virginia is 3-2-3 when facing a ranked Virginia Tech team. This matchup will mark just the third occasion in which an unranked Virginia team faces off with a ranked Virginia Tech team. UVA is 0-1-1 in those matchups.

The Smithfield Commonwealth Clash

• The Smithfield Commonwealth Clash, originally called the Commonwealth Challenge (2005-2007), has been a part of the UVA-Virginia Tech rivalry since 2014. It is an all-sports, points-based program with the Commonwealth Clash trophy presented to the winning school each year for its dominance in head-to-head competitions.
• This meeting will mark the first Commonwealth Clash event of the 2024-25 athletic season. Virginia won the competition in 2023-24 by a margin of 15-7

Early Autumn Streaks

• Both of the previous two seasons featured lengthy unbeaten runs that were kickstarted in late September and early October.
• In 2022, Virginia started the season with a 4-3-0 record through its first seven games.
• The Cavalier season would later feature an eight-game unbeaten run (3-0-5) that started on Oct. 7—Virginia played six top-25 teams over that stretch.
• Virginia went on to earn the No. 4 overall seed in the 2022 NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship.
• In 2023, the Cavaliers started 4-3-1 in their first eight games.
• Virginia tore off a 10-game unbeaten run (7-0-3) that started on Sept. 26.
• The Cavaliers would earn the No. 7 overall seed in the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship.

The Virginia Standard

• Virginia recorded back-to-back five-win seasons (2022-2023) for the first time since 2005-2006
• The Cavaliers are the only team in the conference coming off back-to-back five-win seasons in ACC play
• In 2022, Virginia went unbeaten on the road in ACC play with a 3-0-1 record
• This season, the ACC features 15 teams with the addition of California, SMU and Stanford. 10 of those 15 have been ranked in the preseason top-25
• Virginia is the only team in NCAA DI coming off back-to-back top-eight seeds in the NCAA tournament
• UVA was the No. 4 seed in 2022, and the No. 7 seed in 2023
• The Cavaliers earned back-to-back top-eight seeds for the first time in the program’s history since a six-year run from 1997-2002—a run that started in George Gelnovatch’s second season as head coach