No. 1 Virginia Hits Road For Saturday Night Showdown At Syracuse

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 1 Virginia women’s soccer team (7-0-1, 1-0-0 ACC) hits the road in conference play for a showdown at Syracuse (4-2-4, 0-1-1 ACC) on Saturday night. Kick is set for 7 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
The contest will be streamed on ACCNX which is available through ESPN.com and the ESPN app. Live stats are also available and links to both are at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official account on X (@UVAWomenSoccer).

NOTING THE HOOS

• Virginia moved up in both polls this week, taking over the top spot in the United Soccer Coaches rankings and moving up to No. 3 in the poll released by Top Drawer Soccer
• It marks the first time the Hoos have held the No. 1 spot since November of 2021 when the Hoos were ranked No. 1 heading into the ACC Tournament semifinals that season
• UVA also entered the week with the nation’s top RPI after a five-game homestand that included three straight games against top-16 teams – No. 16 Georgetown, No. 9 Penn State and No. 2 Duke
• Ella Carter was named the ACC Offensive Player of the Week after hitting the game-winning goal against No. 2 Duke and adding an assist on the third goal in the 3-1 victory over the Blue Devils
• Laney Rouse was named to the Top Drawer Soccer team of the week after assisting on the Carter goal and scoring her own against No. 2 Duke then also adding an assist in a shutout of VCU
• Lia Godfrey and Maggie Cagle continue to be an offensive threat for the Hoos as both players rank among the top 5 nationally in assists among all active D1 players (Godfrey 2nd, Cagle T5th)
• Victoria Safradin sits atop the ACC ledger in save percentage and sixth nationally (.931) while also sitting atop the ACC leader board in shutouts (5) and is fifth nationally
• As a keepers unit, the Cavaliers are first in the ACC in save percentage (.935) and fifth nationally
• The Virginia defense has been stout with six shutouts through eight games played and has only conceded two goals through those eight contests
• The Hoos sit second in the ACC in goal against average (.250) and are fifth nationally in GAA
• The game at Syracuse is the first of back-to-back road contests for the Cavaliers over two weeks

THE SERIES WITH SYRACUSE

• Virginia and Duke meet for the ninth time when the teams face off at SU Soccer Stadium on Saturday night
• The Cavaliers lead the series 7-0-1 and hold a 3-0-0 lead in games played at Syracuse
• Maggie Cagle and Jill Flammia each scored for the Hoos in that contest with Cagle assisting on the Flammia goal
• The Orange capitalized on an own goal in the second minute and scored again in the 89th minute to force the draw last time out