hokies end no. 19 elon's perfect season

Topher Wagner

April 15, 2021

ELON, N.C. — Undefeated no more.

Following a historic 8-0 start to its season, No. 19 Elon was dominated on offense from start to finish, falling to Virginia Tech 10-5.

Everything had been going Elon’s way this season. After eight consecutive wins to start the year, the Phoenix feared no team particularly after a 19-3 evisceration over VCU on Sunday.

Coming into Wednesday’s matchup, Elon had cracked double digit goals in all but one game this year, while a stifling defense never yielded more than nine goals to a single opponent.

Going into a matchup with the underachieving three-win Hokies, the Phoenix had good reason to believe they’d continue to roll.

Against Tech, though, Elon hit a wall.

The Hokies (4-8, 0-6 ACC) won on Wednesday evening for their biggest victory this season, and was backed by a fantastic team performance with dominant play on both sides of the pitch.

Tech brought the offensive firepower on the road and outshot Elon 31-18 on the night. VT controlled the offensive side of the field all game long as the Phoenix were unable to penetrate the Hokies’ zone.

Despite a strong defensive showing in the second half, where Tech only registered three goals, Elon’s offense was unable to keep up with VT in its worst shooting performance of the year.

It was all Hokies from the start as Tech jumped out to an early 3-0 lead before Elon even had its second offensive possession.

Consistent draw controls gave VT countless chances in the Phoenix zone, as Whitney Liebler, Paige Petty and Emma Crooks cashed in during the game’s opening seven minutes.

After Tech’s fast start, Elon began to settle down on offense, capitalizing on Hokies’ defensive errors to convert two free position shots to cut the lead in half.

Unfortunately for the Phoenix, VT’s star players proved to be too strong as Crooks and Petty routinely sliced through Elon’s defense as it fell behind for its largest deficit of the year.

Following Caroline Allen’s 16^th goal of the year to put Tech ahead 7-2, Elon finally began to show why it had one of the best defenses in the nation.

The Hokies were held scoreless for the final 12 minutes of the first half, as numerous shot clock violations stalled their offense to end the half. Fortunately for Tech, its own defense stepped up and only allowed only one goal down the stretch, while forcing Elon into three separate offside penalties.

The second half started slow with neither team scoring until the 16 minute mark, as constant saves from Tech goalie Morgan Berman kept Elon’s offense at bay.

Eventually McGlynn cut the Hokies’ lead to three goals after completing her hat-trick, but that was the closest the Phoenix got.

Crooks and Petty were in full control, racking up three goals each for Tech, and the Hokies held on to win for their first victory over a ranked opponent this year.

The Hokies will look to continue to turn their season around as they travel to face No. 8 Duke in Durham on Saturday in search of their first ACC win before the ACC Tournament begins later this month.

For Elon, the Phoenix drop to 8-1 but aim to rebound in a highly anticipated rematch against conference rival James Madison next Sunday.