The No. 10 UVA field hockey team came from behind to defeat William & Mary, 3-2, Tuesday evening at Busch Field in Williamsburg, Va.
The Cavaliers (9-5) struck first, but then fell behind the Tribe (5-7) before coming from behind to earn the win.
“We have played better and it took us awhile to find our rhythm, but that is also a credit to William & Mary and their aggressive style and press,” UVA head coach Michele Madison said. “Once we were able to establish pressure on the ball and were able to distribute how we want to, we were able to put the ball in the back of the net.”
After a scoreless first half, freshman Dominique van Slooten (Laren, Netherlands) broke the deadlock off of a corner in the 43rd minute. Junior Nadine de Koning (Laren, Netherlands) recorded the first of two assists on the day.
The Tribe scored six minutes later when Emma MacLeod deflected a shot by Booter Ellis and took the lead in the 52nd minute on a goal by Cammie Lloyd.
The Cavaliers stormed back 42 seconds later, when senior Riley Tata (Virginia Beach, Va.) tied the game off a pass from junior Tara Vittese (Cherry Hill, N.J.).
Vittese then scored the game-winner in the 56th minute off a penalty corner that was injected by freshman Anzel Viljoen (Matamata, New Zealand) and stopped by de Koning.
The Cavaliers held on for the victory when the Tribe had a penalty corner with no time remaining. William & Mary had two shots in the final sequence, the first of which was saved by sophomore Carrera Lucas (Brooklandville, Md.) and the second which went just wide off the stick of Ellis.
Lucas recorded a total of five saves to improve to 7-3 on the season. The Tribe’s Morgan Connor recorded four saves, but fell to 5-7.
UVA returns home on Saturday, Oct. 15 to host No. 4 Syracuse (12-1, 4-1 ACC) at Turf Field. For those planning on attending the game, please be aware that the Virginia football team will be at home as well on Oct. 15, hosting Pitt with a 12:30 p.m. kickoff. Free parking is available on a first-come, first serve basis for both football and field hockey fans in all surrounding lots including the Cage and University Hall lots as well as the John Paul Jones Arena surface and garage lots. Fans are encouraged to arrive early for Saturday’s contest.
Admission is free for all regular-season home games at Turf Field.
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