Women's soccer falls to Virginia, 2-0, in ACC Tournament

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Terrapins women's soccer team began its ACC schedule in mid-September at Virginia with an undefeated record and high hopes. A 4-1 loss marked a sour start to an ACC slate that would ultimately prove unkind.

Yesterday, the Terps returned to Klockner Stadium for the ACC Tournament quarterfinals hoping not to have ACC play end the way it had started. But for a fatigued No. 16 Terps squad, the No. 9 Cavaliers once more proved too much, bouncing them from the first stage of their postseason, 2-0.

"I thought our minds and our hearts were in a great place, but I just think we didn't have the bounce that we needed to really get a win today," said coach Brian Pensky, whose team is all but assured an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament when the field is revealed next Monday.

In a result similar to last Sunday's loss at Duke, the Terps couldn't string their offense together. They were outshot 18-4, and the Terps put only one of those shots on goal.

And in what has become a trend for Terps losses this season, they struggled to keep possession of the ball throughout the game, with players one step behind passes and leading others too far.

"I don't think we did a great job keeping the ball, and that's connected to our legs and our bounce," Pensky said. "You've got to want to go find it. We talked about that at halftime. The more work we do to keep the ball and move the ball, the less work, the less chasing we'll have to do to get it back."

Yesterday's game marked the end of a stretch during which the Terps (10-5-4, 4-4-2 ACC) faced off against three of the top five teams in the RPI rankings. Having played games against Duke, North Carolina and Virginia in a span of eight days, the Terps knew they would have difficulty with the Cavaliers, not to mention their own tired legs.

"You always know they're a great team," midfielder Amy O'Sullivan said. "They play great soccer, and we have a tough week. We went and competed at Duke, we obviously competed on Thursday. It's just a long week. I think that showed a little bit in our legs. Our heart is there. Our mentality is there. We were a little fatigued today."

Pensky and O'Sullivan said they thought the team didn't have any lingering mental effects from Thursday night's come-from-behind 2-1 win against North Carolina, as they knew what to expect from the Cavaliers (14-3-2, 7-2-1). Rather, it was the 97 minutes of soccer against the Tar Heels that depleted the team's energy entering yesterday's match and largely tipped the balance.

"Physical hangover, I think they're tired," Pensky said. "We had a tough weekend last weekend at Duke. It was a tough game on road, and it was a competitive game. Four days later, you're playing Carolina. I doubt there's another team in the country that played the No. 1, No. 4 and No. 5 teams in the RPI in an eight-day span. I take my hat off to our team and their competitiveness and their will. I just think they were tired today."

Virginia struck first in the 29th minute on a goal by defender Molly Menchel. A throw-in by defender Amanda Fancher found its way to just outside the Terps' box on the left side, and Menchel gathered the ball and sent it rocketing into the upper left corner past a diving Yewande Balogun.

The Cavaliers added insurance in the 83rd minute when forward Gloria Douglas took a pass from forward Caroline Miller and sent a strike past Balogun for a 2-0 lead. The Terps failed to amount any substantial attack in the final eight minutes of play.

"Both goals were killer shots," defender Lydia Hastings said. "I don't know if those girls could hit the same shot twice in a row, especially that first one."

The Terps have now completed a grueling ACC schedule, and, despite suffering another loss, Pensky looks at a positive that can help the team moving forward.

"The good thing is we'll have two weeks to get fresh and fit and ready to play in the NCAA Tournament," Pensky said.

dgallen@umdbk.com