BLACKSBURG – With the prospect of furthering the program's steady NCAA tournament tradition this season, Virginia Tech head coach Chugger Adair proudly revealed the Hokies' 2022 schedule on Thursday, outlining a competitive set of fixtures that features 10 intriguing regular season matches at Thompson Field.
After reaching the second round of the 2021 NCAA tournament, Tech will face nine opponents from last year's postseason field – six of which placed alongside the Hokies among the final 32 teams standing. Tech's 2022 slate is comprised of 11 matches against RPI top-100 programs from last season and houses six year-end, top-25 finishers (per United Soccer Coaches), including its season-closing trip to the defending national champion, Florida State.
"We are excited and happy to release our schedule," said Adair. "I think this is a very well-balanced schedule that will put us in another position to make the NCAA tournament. We have some very strong and difficult non-conference matches on the road and at home."
Beginning their season on the road, the Hokies will make two exhibition appearances at Richmond (Aug. 9) and at Loyola (Aug. 13) prior to opening the regular season on Thursday, Aug. 18, at William & Mary.
Kicking off its home calendar, Tech will ring in a new season at Thompson Field on Sunday, Aug. 21, when it welcomes Indiana to Blacksburg for the first time since 2016. After completing their home stand against Delaware (Aug. 25), the Hokies will leave town again for a pair of contests at Elon (Aug. 28) and at Old Dominion (Sept. 1) – the latter of which won the 2021 Conference USA divisional and postseason titles.
Winding down its non-conference schedule, Tech will camp out for a string of four straight matches on its home pitch as the Hokies cross paths with Charlotte (Sept. 4), South Carolina (Sept. 8) and Northern Colorado (Sept. 11) before opening ACC action against Pitt (Sept. 16). The Hokies' Sept. 8 matchup will serve as a rematch of their 1-0 takedown of the 12th-ranked Gamecocks, who ultimately advanced as far as the 2021 NCAA quarterfinals.
"Away trips to William & Mary, Elon and Old Dominion will be challenging for us – as will be hosting South Carolina. By hosting Indiana, we have a good Big Ten/SEC balance in our non-conference schedule intermixed with some of our local rivals, making for difficult matches."
Behind its ACC opener against Pitt, Tech's ensuing three ACC home opponents each finished the 2021 season ranked inside the top 20 of the United Soccer Coaches year-end rankings: North Carolina (Oct. 1), Virginia (Oct. 13) and Notre Dame (Oct. 20). The Hokies will close their ACC home schedule on Sunday, Oct. 23, with a matinee against Syracuse.
Among its ACC road contests, Tech will visit NC State (Sept. 22), Wake Forest (Sept. 25), Miami (Oct. 6), Clemson (Oct. 9) and Florida State (Oct. 27).
Absent from the Hokies' 2022 ACC schedule are Boston College, Duke and Louisville.
"Our ACC schedule is highlighted with home matches against North Carolina and our rivals up the road, Virginia. Between them, we go back on the road to see Clemson and finish the year later with a big match at Florida State.
"So, our schedule is very balanced and very difficult as we play a number of NCAA tournament teams from 2021. We are excited and looking forward to the challenges we will have with our group as far as moving forward and trying to earn some big results that help us qualify for the NCAA tournament."
Virginia Tech will compete for one of six berths in the 2022 ACC Women's Soccer Championship, which will start on Oct. 30 with quarterfinal matches taking place at campus sites. Tournament action will move to WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina, for the semifinal (Nov. 3) and championship (Nov. 6) rounds.
All kickoff times displayed on Virginia Tech's 2022 season schedule are Eastern and subject to change. Broadcast and streaming information pertaining to Tech women's soccer matches will be released at a later date.
Regular season admission to Thompson Field – the home pitch of the Hokies – is free for any and all fans.
