Virginia Claims ACC Regular Season Title, Defeats SMU 1-0 on the Road

DALLAS, Texas — Cavalier freshman Bacary Tandjigora delivered in the 85th minute, scoring UVA’s latest game-winner of the season to clinch the ACC regular season title for No. 6 Virginia (10-1-4, 5-0-3 ACC) on Friday night (Oct. 31) at Washburne Stadium. The Cavaliers earned a 1–0 win over SMU (7-4-4, 3-2-3 ACC) and claimed the top seed in the 2025 ACC Men’s Soccer Championship.

Goals (Assist)
84’ Virginia – Tandjigora (Simmonds, Dang)

How it Happened:

• The first half featured just three combined shots between the two teams. The Cavaliers created the better chances, as Sami Oulouheu got on the end of a ball in the penalty area but lifted his effort just over the crossbar.
• With just under 20 minutes remaining in the second half, Marco Dos Santos was played in behind the Mustang back line, but the SMU goalkeeper came off his line to smother the chance and keep the game scoreless.
• The Cavaliers broke through in the 84th minute when Nick Dang lofted a ball into the six-yard box that was headed down by Simmonds. The ball fell to Tandjigora, who blasted it into the the net to clinch the victory and the ACC regular season title.

With the Win:

• The Cavaliers clinch their first share of the ACC regular season title since winning the Coastal Division in 2019
• Virginia earned its first outright ACC regular season title since the 2001 season
• Since the ACC Tournament was instituted in 1987, Virginia has been crowned regular season champions 12 times – the Cavaliers won five ACC titles when the conference champion was determined by league finish
• The Cavaliers finish the ACC season with an unblemished 5-0-3 record to mark its first undefeated season in league play since going 6-0-0 in 2001
• UVA improves to 17-3-7 in the month of October since the start of 2022
• Virginia improves to 2-3-0 all-time against SMU and wins the first ACC meeting between the programs
• The Cavaliers have recorded 10 wins in a season for the third consecutive year

Additional Notes:

• Bacary Tandjigora recorded the second goal of his career, and his first game-winner
• Tandjigora’s 85th-minute strike was the latest game-winner recorded by Virginia in any match this season.
• Nick Simmonds recorded his fourth assist of the season
• Simmonds leads the team with 20 points on the season
• Nick Dang recorded his second assist of the season 

From Head Coach George Gelnovatch:
“I think one of the most difficult things to do in college soccer is to win the ACC regular season championship. Tonight, we played to win and not to worry about the results of the other games. Now we get a full week to prepare for the quarterfinal. I couldn’t be happier for my guys – they deserve this moment.”

Up Next:
Virginia has earned the No. 1 seed and the lone first-round bye in the 2025 ACC Men’s Soccer Championship. The Cavaliers will take on the winner of (9) North Carolina and (8) Notre Dame in the quarterfinal round on Sunday (Nov. 9) at Klöckner Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m. on ACC Network.