Hokie ClubBLACKSBURG - The Virginia Tech women's soccer team will head to Cary, North Carolina on Monday as the Hokies finalize their preparations for their upcoming quarterfinal matchup with No. 1 North Carolina on the first day of the 2020 ACC Championship. The Hokies and Tar Heels will play the third of four matches on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at WakeMed Soccer Park with kickoff set for 5:30 p.m.
Tech (5-7-0, 4-4-0 ACC) finished in a tie for the sixth spot in the ACC standings, but earned the seventh seed based on tie-breaker procedures while the Tar Heels (9-0-0, 8-0-0 ACC) finished in a tie for first place with Florida State, but is the second seed, again based on a tiebreaker.
Fan information: The 2020 ACC Women's Soccer Championship will not be open to the public, but ACC Network will carry the quarterfinals and semifinals, while the final will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
2020 ACC CHAMPIONSHIP
QUARTERFINAL GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Nov. 10, 2020 | 5:30 p.m. | WakeMed Soccer Park | Cary, N.C.
vs. #1 North Carolina | Series: UNC leads 19-2-0
Gameday Coverage
Broadcast: ACC Network | LINK
Play-by-Play: Jenn Hildreth
Color Analyst: Julie Foudy
Live Stats: LINK
Championship Central
ACC Bracket
Top Notes for the Hokies (link to Game Notes pdf packet)
Tech makes late run for Cary
- The Hokies closed out their regular season with wins at both Wake Forest (Oct. 29) and Boston College (Nov. 1) to complete their run at qualifying for the 2020 ACC Championship.
- With those two victories, the Hokies climbed into a three-way tie for the sixth spot in the ACC standings as they recorded their first back-to-back road wins since 2016 – at Syracuse (Oct. 6, 2-1) and at Boston College (Oct. 9, 3-2).
- Since Oct. 4, Tech had won five-of-seven matches overall, which included a 4-1 mark in conference play and the team outscored its opponents 19-8 overall during that span and 17-6 in ACC action.
Last time versus North Carolina
- On Sept. 20, 2020, Tech's goalkeeper Alia Skinner stopped, at the time, a season-high nine Tar Heel shots, but a UNC goal in the 15th minute was all it needed to register the 1-0 decision at Dorrance Field.
- North Carolina took advantage of Tech's inability to clear a cross and Brianna Pinto took a pass from Sam Meza in close and chipped a ball just over Skinner for the only goal of the contest.
- The Tar Heels continued to test Skinner and Tech's defense, holding advantages of 13-1 in corners and 19-3 in shots, but they could not break through for an insurance goal as Skinner made six saves in the second half.
Powell honored by the ACC
- Announced on Nov. 3 by the Atlantic Coast Conference, Tori Powell was chosen as the ACC Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week.
- For Powell, it's her first weekly honor from the league and for Tech, it was the third player of the week honor this season, earned by three different
- That number ties for the most weekly honors from the ACC in a single year at Tech (2019), but is the most in terms of individuals. Last year, Mandy McGlynn earned two defensive and Nicole Kozlova had one offensive nod.
- Powell scored twice in the win at Wake Forest, including the game winner, and also had an assist. She added an assist on the second goal in the win at Boston College to complete a six-point week.
- Powell finished the ACC regular season tied for fourth in goals scored in ACC-only matches with four and her 10 points was tied for fifth.
- Among those competing for the ACC title this week, her overall 12 points is tied for third and her five overall goals is tied for second.
Starting Streaks for the Hokies
- During 2019, five players started all 19 matches, with departed seniors Jaylyn Thompson (69) and McGlynn (60) leading the way.
- Among returners, junior Emmalee McCarter now holds the longest active starting streak on the team at 51 straight, followed by Grace Sklopan (31) and Emma Steigerwald (20).
- Then, there's Emily Gray who has started every game she has played for the Hokies. In 2018, she started 22 times, becoming the first freshman at Tech to start every match since 2013 (Murielle Tiernan).
- Gray was at 32 straight starts before missing the match at Clemson (Sept. 29) in 2019 due to a season-ending injury. She has now started in 44 matches, the second most on the team, but not consecutive.
Gray among nation's leaders
- Gray leads the nation in total assists with eight, two better than the next closest player - Duke's Marykate McGuire.
- She also leads the conference in assists per game (0.67), but sits second nationally to Houston Baptist's Tayah Reynolds.
- Gray sits tied for sixth in the country in points, with 14, which is good for third in the conference.
- For the season, she has already notched the fifth-most ever recorded in a single season at the school, tied with both Marika Gray (2010) and Wendy Kotwas (1999) and one behind Jazmine Reeves (2011) for the fourth most.
- She also has 16 career assists which is good for seventh on Tech's all-time career list and one behind Erin Moore (2004-07) for the sixth spot.