UVA (10-4-4) is back in the postseason for the first time since the 2019 season.
The Wahoos received a first-round bye, and have a chance to host every tournament game all the way up until the College Cup, should they advance that far. Virginia hasn’t lost across its last seven contests, winning three and tying four. UVA is 67-34-5 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, including a 52-19-2 mark on its home pitch.
The Hoos came up short in the ACC Tournament semifinals at Syracuse, falling 5-3 in penalty kicks after finishing tied 2-2 at the end of regulation, but head coach George Gelnovatch saw some positives that he believes will pay dividends down the stretch.
“This game feels like a loss, but in the end, it’s a draw, and a result like this is ultimately only going to help us,” he said after the contest. “I think we came out and played a really even game in the first half, but Syracuse really picked up in the second. Our last two games have been College Cup-caliber matches. That’s what the ACC Tournament can feel like.”
Junior striker Leo Afonso, an All-ACC first-team selection, leads the Hoos in nearly every offensive statistical category — 7 goals (first), 4 assists (tied for first), 18 points (first), 67 shots (first), 28 shots on goal (first) and 4 game-winning goals (first).
Virginia holds a 6-0-1 record in games that Afonso has found the back of the net this season. Junior forward Philip Horton is second on the team with 13 points (5 goals, 3 assists).
Defensively, third-year goalkeeper Holden Brown has posted 8 shutouts on the year, allowing just 19 goals (on 187 shots) in his 1640 minutes. Brown has a 1.04 goals-against average and a save percentage of .753. The Cavaliers also have the ACC Defensive Player of the Year in senior Andreas Ueland, who was also a first-team all-conference choice, anchoring the back end.
The Thundering Herd (11-3-3) got past Elon, 1-0, in the opening round on Thursday, and will be looking for the upset on Sunday. Marshall has made it to the second round of the tournament in each of the last four seasons.
The Herd is led by freshman forward Matthew Bell (9 goals, 4 assists) and redshirt senior forward Milo Yosef (8 goals, 3 assists). Junior forward Adam Aoumaich leads Marshall with 9 assists on the season.
Graduate keeper Oliver Semmle’s shutout of the Phoenix Thursday was his sixth of the year. He owns a .716 goals-against average and a .760 save percentage in 2022.
UVA, which had advanced to the NCAA Tournament 39-straight times before missing out on the postseason the last two years, has never lost to Marshall, winning all six previous meetings, with the last coming in 2018. The Hoos and Herd have never met up in the postseason.
With a win over Marshall, the Cavaliers would advance to the Sweet 16 and would host the No. 13 Indiana-Saint Louis winner next week. The Hoosiers and Billikens do battle Sunday morning at 11 a.m.
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Chris Graham
