Wake Forest Set for ACC Battle with No. 2 Virginia

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Continuing one of the toughest conference schedules in the nation, the Wake Forest women's soccer team is set to take on No. 2 Virginia Sunday, Sept. 15 at Klöckner Stadium.

The match is slated for noon and will be shown live on ACC Network with live stats available here.

Need to Know - Game 9
Wake Forest (5-2-1) at Virginia (8-0-0)
Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024 - 12 PM - ACC Network
Charlottesville, Va. – Klöckner Stadium

Quick Hitters

The Demon Deacons have seen nine different goal scorers over the first eight games of the season with 13 separate Deacs recording at least one goal contribution.
Emily Colton (2G, 2A), Anna Swanson (3G) and Sierra Sythe (2G, 2A) are all tied for the team lead with six points apiece heading into the second match of conference play.
- Five Deacs already have at least five points as Caiya Hanks (1G, 3A) and Hannah Johnson (2G, 1A) round out the top goal contributors so far this season.
This will mark the third ranked opponent for the Deacs so far this season and second-consecutive, winning the first 2-1 over No. 20 Mississippi State.
- Of note, a win would mark the highest-ranked victory for Wake Forest since the 2-1 win over No. 2 Duke on Oct. 31, 2021.
Wake Forest entered the weekend ranked eighth in the nation and third in the conference in shots per game (22.4).
- Additionally, the Deacs are third in the ACC and 12th nationally with 8.3 corners per game.

Last Time Out

Despite controlling a majority of the ball and limiting the opponents to their fewest amount of shots in over eight years, the Wake Forest women's soccer team dropped the conference opener to No. 10 North Carolina, 1-0, Thursday evening at Dorrance Field.
The Demon Deacons looked the better side for a majority of the contest. They generated multiple chances over the first 25 minutes and registered the first five shots of the contest before the Tar Heels scored the lone goal of the evening in the 27th minute.
The Deacs held 57 percent of the possession Thursday night and out-shot the Tar Heels, 9-to-3.
Wake Forest has now out-possessed and out-shot every opponent so far this season over the first eight matches. Coming into Thursday, Wake Forest ranked eighth in the nation and third in the conference in shots per game with 22.4.
This marked the first time since at least 2015 that the Tar Heels attempted fewer than four shots in a match.
The Deacs also won three corners on the night without conceding one on the other end.
Senior Emily Colton, who returned to Dorrance Field for the first time since transferring to Wake Forest, was dangerous once again for the Demon Deacons as she came close multiple times to finding an opener.
Four Demon Deacons went the full 90, including senior defenders Laurel Ansbrow and Zara Chavoshi, who defended well throughout the match and limited North Carolina's chances.
Redshirt freshman Valentina Amaral made her first start of the season in goal and first in over a year.

Scouting the Cavaliers

No. 2-ranked Virginia enters the match with a perfect 8-0-0 record and is coming off of a 3-1 victory in the ACC opener against Miami.
- The Cavaliers are one of six schools with a perfect record and one of two ACC schools unblemished (Stanford).
Offensively, Virginia ranks fifth in the ACC and 23rd nationally in goals per game (2.75).
- The Cavaliers are led by Maggie Cagle, who has recorded a team-high five goals thus far in 2024 after leading the team with eight goals and seven assists last season.
The Cavaliers also rank third in the conference with six clean sheets in their first eight matches and have only conceded twice all season.
- Their 0.25 goals-against average ranks seventh nationally and third in the ACC.
- In goal, Victoria Safradin has posted an .846 save percentage in seven appearances this campaign.

Series History vs. Virginia

The Demon Deacons trail in the all-time series against the Cavaliers, 8-21-4.
Last season, Wake Forest picked up its first win against Virginia in over a decade with a 2-0 victory at Spry Stadium on Sept. 24.
- The clean sheet was the collegiate-debut for goalkeeper Payton Cahill.
- Late goals from Anna Swanson (78') and Hannah Johnson (89') secured the ranked-victory for the Deacs.
The last victory in Charlottesville for Wake Forest was a 1-0 win in 2008.

Up Next
Following the match, the Demon Deacons will return home for yet another tough ACC clash against current No. 1-ranked Stanford on Thursday, Sept. 19 at 7 p.m. The match will be shown live on ACC Network Extra.

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Players Mentioned

Valentina Amaral

Laurel Ansbrow

Payton Cahill

Zara Chavoshi

Emily Colton

Caiya Hanks

Hannah Johnson

Anna Swanson

Sierra Sythe

Wake Forest Athletics