Wake Forest Begins ACC Play Against Virginia at Spry Stadium

Friday, September 13

Winston-Salem, N.C.

7 p.m.

Wake Forest University

Virginia

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Wake Forest Begins ACC Play Against Virginia at Spry Stadium

9/12/2024 11:54:00 AM | Men's Soccer

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The Demon Deacons will play in the first of their eight ACC matches when they host the Cavaliers on Friday evening.

By: Stephen Czarda

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Wake Forest men's soccer will open up ACC play on Friday night when the Demon Deacons host Virginia at Spry Stadium. The match will be the first of eight conference contests for Wake Forest in 2024 and the first of four played in Winston-Salem.

Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the match will be streamed on ACC Network Extra.

Fan Information
Parking is encouraged in lots A, B, Q, W1 & W2. A complete parking map of campus is here.

Gates open one hour prior to kickoff for all home matches.

Wake Forest Athletics is committed to providing the Best Fan Experience in North Carolina within a safe and fan-friendly environment. The first 300 fans will receive a free stadium horn while also serving as School Night for Caleb's Creek Elementary, Moore Elementary, Speas Elementary, Mineral Spring Middle and The Downtown School.

Ticket Information
2024 Wake Forest soccer single game tickets are on-sale now giving fans the opportunity to witness The Best Fan Experience In North Carolina from a number of unique seating options!

Wake Forest University faculty and staff must show their University IDs at the box office upon arrival to Spry Stadium.

Accessibility Information
Wake Forest Athletics strives to provide content at games, social media and on GoDeacs.com that is accessible to all people. In the continued effort to improve accessibility of the technology and digital content at tomorrow's game, fans can access closed captions here for the public address announcer and in-venue content.

Wake Forest Athletics is always open to learning about new ideas and ways we can improve. Please report accessibility challenges, identify content you find inaccessible, or give us general feedback at pantagw@wfu.edu.

The Matchup

Wake Forest and Virginia will renew a longtime series between two ACC powerhouses on Friday night at Spry Stadium.
Both the Demon Deacons and Cavaliers are 2-2-1 through the first five matches of the 2024 season. Wake Forest has scored victories over Central Arkansas and Radford while Virginia has defeated Rider and Saint Joseph's.
Friday's match will mark the ACC opener for Wake Forest, while Virginia began conference play last week suffering a narrow 1-0 loss to Duke.
Wake Forest currently ranks tied for second in the ACC in shots per game (19.2) while Virginia is tied for the conference lead in fewest goals conceded per match (0.60).

Last Time Out

Wake Forest returns to Winston-Salem to begin a three-match homestand by defeating Radford 1-0 on Monday night.
The Demon Deacons dominated play throughout the evening with significant advantages in shots (26 to 4), shots on goal (11 to 1), corner kicks (9 to 0) and possession (72 percent). Additionally, the team connected on 91 percent of more than 750 passes attempted.
The game-winning goal came courtesy of freshman Ryan Belal, who headed home a cross right on target from senior Nicolas Mancilla. The goal was the first of Belal's collegiate career while Mancilla registered his second career assist.
Defensively, Wake Forest allowed just one shot on goal, an attempt outside of the 18 that did not trouble senior goalkeeper Trace Alphin. It marked Wake Forest's first clean sheet of the season.
In total, 20 Demon Deacons contributed to the winning result.

Competing Against The Best

Widely known as the best soccer conference in the country, Wake Forest over the last decade has earned the most ACC regular season victories (52). The 52 victories are 11 more than any other conference program dating back to the 2015 season.
Additionally, during the divisional format implemented from 2015-23, Wake Forest's five division titles led the ACC.

ACC Regular Season Victories: 2015-23

1.	Wake Forest	52
2.	North Carolina	41
2.	Clemson	41
4.	Virginia	35
5.	Louisville	34
5.	Duke	34
7.	Notre Dame	32
8.	Pitt	27
9.	Virginia Tech	21
10.	Syracuse	18
11.	Boston College	16
12.	NC State	14

The Spry Advantage

Since head coach Bobby Muuss' arrival in 2015 along with the coaching staff of associate head coaches Dane Brenner and Steve Armas along with assistant coach Ade Taiwo, Wake Forest ranks No. 1 nationally in home wins (104), 17 more than any other program nationally during that span and 21 more than any ACC program.
Over the last 10 seasons, the Deacs have won at least eight of their matches at Spry Stadium including a double-digit win total seven of those seasons.
Wake Forest's home winning percentage of 82.2 percent since 2015 also ranks third nationally, behind only Indiana (84.6) and Denver (82.5).

Scouting the Cavaliers

Virginia enters the match with a 2-2-1 overall record and a 0-1-0 record in ACC play.
The Cavaliers' attack has been led by former ASUN Freshman of the Year Nick Dang's three goals while Reese Miller has collected a pair of goals and an assist. In total, 10 Virginia players have registered goal contributions.
Defensively, the Cavaliers have conceded just three goals on the campaign and have not allowed more than one goal in a single match.
Friday's match will mark the 63rd all-time meeting between Wake Forest and Virginia, as the Cavaliers lead the all-time series 40-14-8.
The contest will also mark the ninth against Virginia under 10th-year head coach Bobby Muuss, as Wake Forest has won three of those previous matches along with drawing in the 2017 ACC Tournament final before the Demon Deacons clinched a second-consecutive ACC title 4-3 in penalty kicks.
In the last contest between Wake Forest and Virginia at Spry, the Demon Deacons matched their largest victory in the all-time series in a 3-0 decision on Nov. 3, 2021.

Looking Ahead

Wake Forest will conclude its string of home matches on Tuesday evening, hosting No. 20 Elon in the program's annual Mental Health Awareness Match.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the match will air nationally on the ACC Network.