TECH OPENS SPRING SEASON IN CHARLOTTE

Ishan Lamba

March 7, 2021

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Virginia Tech starts out the 2021 season on the road, facing off against Charlotte at 5 p.m. Sunday. The 49ers finished the 2019 season ranked 80th in the country, but did not play in 2020.

The two schools have a relatively even series, with Charlotte leading the all-time series 3-2-1. However, the Hokies have won the last two matchups, outscoring them 7-1. This will also be the first match played in Charlotte since 2002. These two also haven’t played a game since 2013.

The 49ers are just 1-2, with their lone win over Old Dominion just over a week ago. In 2019, their season ended in a heartbreaking, double-overtime loss to FAU in the C-USA tournament semifinal. The encouraging news is that many of those players remain with the team.

Ariana Maibodi, the sophomore forward that scored one of the three goals, has already logged an assist in just 40 total minutes of gameplay. Forward Julia Patrum, who had three shots in the semifinal, has scored two of the 49ers’ four goals this spring.

Tech will also be facing Abby Stapleton in goal. The senior goalkeeper’s save percentage has jumped from 0.692 in 2019 to 0.765 this season.

However, the Hokies should understand Charlotte’s yellow card situation. The 49ers have four yellow cards already, and have conceded two goals from the spot on three attempts.

Tech’s speedy freshman Tori Powell terrorized opposing defenses in the fall, scoring five goals and two assists. Alongside her is Emily Gray in midfield, who has an astonishing eight assists to her name, including two to Powell, as well as three goals. They combined for 52 out of the 121 shots in the fall.

In goal for the Hokies is Alia Skinner, had a tremendous freshman year with a save percentage of 0.800.

Along with a defense consisting entirely of freshmen, this young Hokie squad hopes to get the spring season off to a strong start and build off a fall season that ended 5-8.

Sunday marks the first of an entire slate of matchups this spring that see Virginia Tech taking on only out-of-conference opponents. It’s a change of pace from the fall, which was dominated by almost entirely ACC play.