Virginia Tech drops its second straight in ACC opener

By Duncan Weigand

Staff Writer

February 26, 2022

Paige Richbourg leaped up into the air gracefully to receive a pass that was pretty high, even for the 5-foot-9 midfielder. She caught it anyway, then froze the Virginia Tech defender covering her.

Landing awkwardly in the eight meter arc, she fired, without hesitation, a shot that found the back of the net.

As she slammed her stick down emphatically, her teammates ran over to celebrate the goal that stunned even the television announcers. The goal was Louisville’s fourth in a row, giving more life to a Cardinals (3-2, 1-0 Atlantic Coast) team that struggled to find their footing in the first half.

Meanwhile, Dr. Dre’s classic song, “Still Dre'' reverberated around the field for the second time, signaling Richbourg’s second goal of the game. Coach Skiera and the Hokies (2-3, 0-1 ACC) on the sideline looked up in dismay as the Cardinals began to regain momentum that the Hokies held firmly throughout the entire first half.

After getting that sixth goal, Virginia Tech never led again, losing 14-11 in Louisville to start conference play.

Virginia Tech came into Louisville looking to avoid their second loss in a row after losing a heartbreaker against the Liberty Flames on Wednesday at Thompson Field. The game saw the Hokies have a stranglehold on the game only to lose that momentum and fall in overtime.

The game started off fast in the opening five minutes of play with four goals combined by both teams. The Hokies had an early 3-1 lead thanks to Hannah Mardiney, Olivia Vergano and Claire Schotta, who had two goals and one assist in a solid game.

Nicole Perroni was able to get one right back for Louisville with a quick stutter-step move that fooled the Virginia Tech defender. Perroni then had a clear lane to the net as she shot across her body, then watched as the ball hit the lower half of the net.

The Hokies scored again one more to increase their lead back to two. Tech looked destined to head into the second quarter with a two goal lead. An impressive behind-the-back style shot from its leading goal scorer, Sophie Student, got past the Cardinals goalkeeper; however, in the dying seconds of the quarter Hannah Morris ripped a quick shot that hit top shelf for the Cardinals, who only trailed 4-3 heading to the second.

The second was more of the same from both teams, who continued to not give an inch. When Virginia Tech tried to pull away, Louisville made it known it was not going to go away quietly. Tech scored twice and Louisville scored three times, leveling the score at six at halftime.

All in all, the stats were pretty even. Virginia Tech ended the half with 13 shots to Louisville’s 11. The turnovers were also limited, as the Hokies gave up five and Louisville gave up six.

Louisville got two quick goals early in the third quarter, but the Hokies wasted no time getting the two goals they had surrendered right back. Sarah Lubnow got a free position goal, and Student got the tying goal.

Only moments later, Alexa Steffens got her first tally of the season for Louisville. It could not have come at a better time, handing the Cardinals a 9-8 lead and snuffed out any momentum Virginia Tech was gaining.

By this point, though the score was close, the Cardinals clearly dictated the pace, and not even a minute later, Caroline Blalock walked in and got a quick shot off to give the Cardinals a 10-8 lead.

The fourth quarter gave the Hokies life. Tech had a one-player advantage after Louiville’s Bella Karstien earned herself a yellow card for hitting a defender with the ball from close range with just 12 seconds remaining in the third.

Unfortunately for Tech, Louisville won the draw to open the period and milked the clock to kill off the penalty without any sustained Tech attack.

Another key swing came when the Hokies rang the ball off the crossbar only for Morris to score her third goal of the game on the other end to extend the Cardinals’ lead to 11-8 with 12 minutes remaining.

However, the Hokies showed fight as Whitney Liebler made an incredible pass from the side of the net to an open Mardiney, who after a couple of stick fakes bounced the ball past J Pleck to narrow the lead for the Cardinals.

With 7:12 remaining in the fourth, Perroni found the back of the net after she got into open space to make the lead 12-9 for the Cardinals. The Hokies watched as the clock continued to wind down. Chances kept coming for Louisville, but the defense stood strong.

After a turnover by Louisville led to a quick attack the other way, Skiera called a timeout with under five minutes remaining in the fourth. She knew that if the Hokies had any chance of coming back in this one they needed to capitalize on this possession.

A mere 24 seconds after the timeout had ended, Vergano continued her hot streak to give Virginia Tech a much-needed goal. This one was bound to be close down the stretch.

With the score 12-10 Louisville controlled another important draw. Louisville continued to pass the ball around with little push back from the Hokies. Four minutes turned to three. The shot clock wound down, exactly what Virginia Tech was hoping for.

With 3:12 showing on the clock, Louisville made its push toward the net. Jordan Tilley played tight defense on the Cardinals attacker, but she got too close to the head and was carded, an absolute killer for Virginia Tech.

Blalock was then fouled again and awarded a free-position chance with 2:09 remaining. She capitalized on her chance and the Cardinals took a 13-10 lead effectively putting the nail in the coffin for Virginia Tech. Both teams scored one more time before the clock expired. The final horn sounded and the scoreboard read Louisville 14 Virginia Tech 11.

The Cardinals stormed the field and surrounded their keeper as they were able to stave off a late game comeback, something the Hokies couldn’t do Wednesday against Liberty. The Hokies walked off the field after losing in heartbreaking fashion for the second time in four days.

The Hokies will look to get back in the win column at home against Radford on March 2nd at 4 p.m. and can improve their record to 3-1 against teams in Virginia.