No. 13 Wake Forest Primed for Another ACC Test Against Cal

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Coming off of one of the biggest regular-season wins in program history, the No. 13-ranked Wake Forest women's soccer team will look to carry the momentum over to its match with Cal this Sunday, Sept. 22 at Spry Stadium.

The match is slated for noon and tickets are available for purchase here.

For those unable to attend, the match will be shown live on ACC Network with live stats available here.

Prior to the match, Wake Forest soccer will honor seniors Malaika Meena and Kristin Johnson for their incredible contributions to the program over the last four years.

Need to Know - Game 11
California (8-1-1, 1-0-0 ACC) at No. 13 Wake Forest (7-2-1, 2-1-0 ACC)
Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024 - 12 PM - ACC Network
Winston-Salem, N.C. – Spry Stadium

Quick Hitters

The Demon Deacons are coming off of their first-ever win over a No. 1-ranked opponent in program history.
- Additionally, it's the 11th win over a top-five opponent for Wake Forest and second this week.
- Wake Forest is the first team in NCAA history to defeat #1 and #2 in back-to-back matches.
- This marked the 18th time in program history that Wake Forest faced a top-ranked team and first since the 1-1 draw against No. 1 Virginia on Sept. 20, 2019.
Spry Stadium has been a fortress for the Demon Deacons over the last three seasons, as Wake Forest has posted a stellar 15-2-5 record at home since the start of 2022 and is currently on a 13-game unbeaten stretch.
- This marks the second-longest unbeaten home stretch in program history and is one shy of the record set in 2007-08.
The Demon Deacons entered the weekend ranked 13th nationally in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, the highest ranking for Wake Forest since 2013.
- Of note, the Demon Deacons moved up to No. 3 in the RPI following the historic victory, behind only Michigan State and North Carolina.

Wins Over Top-Five Opponents (All-Time)

Date	Opponent	Score
10/27/2000	#5 North Carolina	W, 1-0
10/1/2004	#3 Virginia	W, 2-1 (OT)
10/8/2009	#5 Florida State	W, 3-0
9/15/2011	#3 Florida State	W, 2-0
11/4/2011	#3 Duke	W, 2-1
9/20/2012	#4 Boston College	W, 2-0
8/24/2017	#3 South Carolina	W, 3-2
9/2/2018	#5 Penn State	W, 1-0
10/31/2021	#2 Duke	W, 2-1
9/15/2024	#2 Virginia	W, 3-0
9/19/2024	#1 Stanford	W, 1-0

Women's soccer is believed to be the sixth program in Wake Forest history to knock off the No. 1 team in the country joining Baseball, Field Hockey, Men's Basketball, Men's Soccer and Men's Tennis.
The Demon Deacons enter the match ranked fourth in the conference and 16th nationally with 19.10 shots per-game.
- Additionally, they are ranked fourth in the ACC in corners per-game and 16th nationally with 7.50.
In goal, Valentina Amaral recorded her third-career clean sheet against the Cardinal and second of the season.
- She has only conceded one goal in over 500 minutes for her career with a .926 save percentage and a 0.18 goals-against average.
Wake Forest now has six points in ACC play, putting them in fourth, one point behind leaders SMU.
The Demon Deacons have opened ACC play with one of the toughest stretches in the nation, with the first four conference opponents having a combined record of 31-2-1 at the time of playing Wake Forest.
- The first three ACC opponents are all currently in the top 15 in the RPI: North Carolina (2nd), Stanford (10th) and Virginia (14th).
The winner on Thursday was Emily Colton's third goal in a Wake Forest uniform and 13th of her career.
- She has now recorded at least one goal contribution in four of the last five matches.
- Her nine points rank second on the team so far this season.
With her assist on the goal, Caiya Hanks has now reached double-digit points for the season-consecutive season with three goals and a team-high four assists.
Wake Forest has five players with five or more points so far in 2024.
- Caiya Hanks - 10 points (3 goals, 4 assists)
- Emily Colton - 9 points (3 goals, 3 assists)
- Sierra Sythe - 8 points (3 goals, 2 assists)
- Anna Swanson - 6 points (3 goals)
- Hannah Johnson - 5 points (2 goals, 1 assist)

Last Time Out

For the first time in program history, the No. 13-ranked Wake Forest women's soccer team defeated the No. 1 team in the country, as it handled Stanford, 1-0, Thursday evening at Spry Stadium.
The Demon Deacons continued to ride the momentum after defeating No. 2 Virginia, 3-0, on Sunday. The Deacs grew into the contest and controlled possession for much of the first half before getting on the board with a wonder strike from senior Emily Colton in the 30th minute into the top right corner of the goal.
It marked her third goal for the Demon Deacons and 13th of her career. Junior Caiya Hanks picked up her team-high fourth assist of the season following a great forward run.
The marker would be all Wake Forest needed as they handed the No. 1 Cardinal their first loss of the season. The match also marked the first conference game for Stanford as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Deacs continued to be on the front foot for much of the first half as they had chances to double their lead. At the half, Wake Forest had an 8-to-4 shot advantage and went on to finish the game with a 14-11 shot edge for the game.
On the defensive side of the pitch, the Demon Deacons stayed composed and organized while redshirt freshman Valentina Amaral stood tall in net. She made a key save in the ninth minute to keep the game level and finished the night with four saves for her second consecutive clean sheet.
Five outfield players for the Demon Deacons went the full 90 minutes, including the entire backline of seniors Laurel Ansbrow, Zara Chavoshi, Kristin Johnson and freshman Sierra Sythe. The four defended superbly over the course of the contest.
Wake Forest has not conceded a goal in the last 243 combined minutes, dating back to the game at No. 10 North Carolina a week ago. Overall this season, Amaral has a 0.28 goals against average including 10 saves on 11 shots (.909 save percentage).
Wake Forest has been incredible at Spry Stadium over the last three seasons, as it has posted a stellar 15-2-5 record at home since the start of 2022 and is currently on a 13-game unbeaten stretch. This marks the second-longest unbeaten home stretch in program history and is one shy of the record set in 2007-08.
Women's soccer is believed to be the sixth program in Wake Forest history to knock off the No. 1 team in the country joining Baseball, Field Hockey, Men's Basketball, Men's Soccer and Men's Tennis.
The Demon Deacons are now 3-0-1 all-time against Stanford dating back to 1997. Of note, Wake Forest is the only team in the nation to be undefeated against Stanford all-time with at least three matches played.

Scouting the Golden Bears

Cal is coming off of a 3-1 win over NC State in its first-ever ACC match and are currently on a seven-match winning streak, scoring three or more goals in five of those seven outings.
The Golden Bears are led by senior forward Karlie Lema, who has a nation-best 13 goals in addition to five assists for a stellar 31 points through 10 games, which also leads the nation.
- Lema bagged a brace and an assist last time out against the Wolfpack.
Cal's 27 total goals so far this season are third-most in the ACC and 10th-most in the country.
In goal, Kelly McManus has posted a 1.02 goals-against average over eight matches and holds a 7-0-1 record this season in her starts.

Series History vs. Cal

Wake Forest trails the all-time series against Cal, 1-2-0 dating back to 2000.
The lone victory in the series came the last time the two sides met back in 2003, as Wake Forest earned a 2-1 victory in California.

Home Ticket Information
To experience The Best Fan Experience in North Carolina, single game bleacher general admission is $10 with reserve chairbacks at $15.

To order, visit godeacs.com/tickets or call the Wake Forest Ticket Office at 336.758.3322.

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.

Up Next
Following the match, the Demon Deacons will have a week to recover before hitting the road for a clash with Syracuse on Sunday, Sept. 29 at 1 p.m.

The match will be shown live on ACC Network Extra.

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No. 13 Wake Forest Primed for Another ACC Test Against Cal

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Valentina Amaral

Laurel Ansbrow

Zara Chavoshi

Emily Colton

Caiya Hanks

Hannah Johnson

Kristin Johnson

Malaika Meena

Anna Swanson

Sierra Sythe

Wake Forest Athletics

No. 13 Wake Forest Primed for Another ACC Test Against Cal

Related News

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Valentina Amaral

Laurel Ansbrow

Zara Chavoshi

Emily Colton

Caiya Hanks

Hannah Johnson

Kristin Johnson

Malaika Meena

Anna Swanson

Sierra Sythe

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