#4 UVA women’s soccer tops NC State, 6-0

The fourth-ranked UVA women’s soccer team posted six goals for the second consecutive game, downing NC State 6-0 Sunday in front of 1,741 fans at Klöckner Stadium. The Cavaliers (13-1, 5-1 ACC) ran their school-record home win streak to 28 games, while the Wolfpack (2-10-2, 0-6) remained winless in the conference.

Junior Kaili Torres (Fleming Island, Fla.) had a goal and three assists to lead the Cavalier attack. Junior Brittany Ratcliffe (Williamstown, N.J.) scored twice to post the fifth multi-goal game of her career. Senior Danielle Colaprico (Freehold, N.J.) had a goal and two assists for the second straight game and junior Makenzy Doniak (Chino Hills, Calif.) added a goal and an assist. Sophomore Meghan Cox (Springfield, Va.) also scored for the Cavaliers.

“Overall, it was a good performance on both sides of the ball,” said head coach Steve Swanson. “We are getting better with each game. Our decisions are getting better, our finishing is getting better, and our runs are getting better. As we continue to play more games, we are becoming more cohesive as a team on the field. Also, the crowd was fantastic again today. We get such great support here at home and that means a lot to us.”

Virginia took a 1-0 lead in the 27th minute of play. Torres collected a loose ball in the box and delivered a cross in front of goal that Ratcliffe knocked in for her seventh goal of the season. Three minutes later it was Torres doubling the lead. After Colaprico played a ball to her on the flank, Torres hit a cross that curled inside the far post for her third goal of the season. The Cavaliers took the 2-0 lead into the break, outshooting the Wolfpack 17-2.

The Cavaliers wasted little time finding the back of the net in the second half as Doniak curled in a shot from the flank inside the far post in the 49th minute for her team-leading ninth goal of the season. Colaprico notched her fifth goal of the year in the 54th minute when she one-timed a cross from Olivia Hazelrigg (Rolling Hills, Calif.). Cox headed in a Colaprico corner in the 65th minute for her fourth goal of the season to make the score 5-0. It was also the 10th goal of the season by a Cavalier defender, breaking last year’s school record of nine goals from the back line. Ratcliffe concluded the scoring in the 70th minute with her second of the day and eighth of the year. Torres played a long ball to Doniak, who beat the keeper and delivered a cross that Ratcliffe tapped into the empty net. Torres’ three assists were a season-high by a Cavalier this season and the most since Morgan Brian (St. Simons Island, Ga.) had three assists at NC State last year.

With a goal and assist on Sunday, Doniak reached the 100-point mark (39 goals, 22 assists) for her career, becoming the sixth Cavalier to accomplish the feat. With Brian (104 career points) and Doniak, Virginia is the only team in the nation with two active 100-point scorers and is the first ACC team to have multiple active 100-point scorers since North Carolina in 2005.

Colaprico’s two assists give her an ACC-leading 11 assists for the year, setting a Virginia record for a fourth-year. Her career total of 36 assists is tied with Shannon Foley (2003-07) for second on Virginia’s all-time list.

Coming off a 6-3 win over Boston College on Thursday, the Cavaliers posted at least six goals in consecutive games for the first time since 2011, when they downed Richmond 6-0 and Liberty 9-1. It was the first time since Virginia accomplished the feat in ACC play since 2008, when UVa followed a 6-0 win over NC State with a 7-1 win at Clemson.

Overall, Virginia outshot NC State 31-6, accumulating a season-high in shots. The Cavaliers also had an 11-3 corner kick advantage. Sophomores Morgan Stearns (San Antonio, Texas) and Jessie Ferrari (Fairfax, Va.) each played a half in goal to record Virginia’s seventh shutout of the season. Wolfpack starting keeper Mackenzie Stelljes made five saves before making way for Karly Gustafson, who made three saves.
Virginia will begin a three-game road trip on Oct. 19 at Louisville. It will be the first meeting between the schools and will mark the Cavaliers’ first trip to the state of Kentucky.