Field hockey: No. 5 Virginia wins at No. 8 Liberty, 4-3

The No. 5 Virginia field hockey team (11-3, 3-2 ACC) earned a 4-3 win at No. 8 Liberty (9-4) on Thursday (Oct. 15) in Lynchburg, Va.

Junior Lucy Hyams (Whitstable, England) scored two goals and also had an assist. Redshirt freshman goalie Carrera Lucas (Brooklandville, Md.) played the second half in goal, making four saves and improving her record to 5-1. Freshman Laura Schnatmeier (Bad Schwartau, Germany) also logged a key defense save in the second half.

“This was a great effort today against a very good Liberty team,” said Virginia head coach Michele Madison. “It took us awhile to get the flow going, but in the second half we came out strong, found our passing game and were able to put the ball in the back of the net. That gave us the confidence to finish the game and get the win.”

Liberty struck first, scoring a goal off a penalty corner 20:32 into the game. Virginia was awarded a penalty corner in the waning seconds of the first half with Hyams scoring on a second-chance opportunity after the initial corner to tie the game.

The Cavaliers started the second half on fire, with freshman Greta Ell (Plains, Pa.) and junior Caleigh Foust (Bryn Mawr, Pa.) scoring a pair of goals in the first 10 minutes of the half. Hyams scored another goal off a penalty corner with 16:33 remaining to give UVA a 4-1 lead.

The Flames cut into the lead six minutes later, tipping in a shot that rolled past the extended arm of Lucas to narrow the gap to 4-2. Liberty made it a one-goal game with 9:30 remaining, scoring on a penalty corner.

Liberty had possession in the final minute, getting the ball into the circle in the final 30 seconds, but the Cavaliers were able to clear the ball and trap it in the corner with the clock ticking down to secure the win.

Virginia had a slight edge in shots, 16-14, and penalty corners, 11-7.

The game against Liberty was the sixth top-10 match-up for the Cavaliers this season. Virginia is 4-2 this season against top-10 opponents, with the two losses coming against higher-ranked teams

Virginia closes out its current road trip playing at No. 15 Delaware (11-3, 2-1 CAA) on Sunday, Oct. 18 at 1 p.m. before returning home to host No. 13 Boston College (7-6, 0-4 ACC) on Senior Day on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 1 p.m.