The fall regular season ended with a bang Monday afternoon for the Virginia Tech men's soccer team as the Hokies defeated the Cavaliers, doing so for the first time since 2005 and just the third time overall.
Outside of an early shot by Virginia in the 3rd minute that required Mathijs Swaneveld to come up with the save, Tech (3-1-2, 3-1-2) and Virginia (2-3-1, 2-3-1) both struggled to find a rhythm offensively in the opening 20 minutes of play.
The Hokies found their groove towards the middle of the opening half, as shots by Jacob Labovitz (25th minute) and Sivert Hauglhi (31st minute) we're just inches off their mark and went wide. In the 32nd minute sophomore Daniel Pereira latched on to a ball just past mid field, dribbled it to a spot eight yards outside of the box and fired a shot to the near post for his first goal of the season. Tech would go on to take that 1-0 lead into the break.
Virginia fought desperately in the second half to even the score, but two saves by Swaneveld and sweltering defense allowed Tech to hold on to their lead until time expired.
Gallery: (11-6-2020) 2020 MEN'S SOCCER AT VIRGINIA
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Shots: Virginia Tech 12-10
- Corners: Tied 4-4
- Saves: Virginia Tech 3-2
GAME NOTES
- The Hokies used the same starting lineup for the first third time this season.
- The win marked the first time that Tech had won three consecutive ACC matches since joining the league in 2004.
- The win against Virginia was the first for head coach Mike Brizendine.
- With the win tech has now won at least three ACC regular season matches in four of the last five seasons
UP NEXT
The Hokies will play Clemson in the first round of the ACC tournament in Durham, North Carolina on Wednesday, November 15th.