When Virginia Tech hosted Radford on March 2, the program entered the game with a losing record and two straight losses.
Now, halfway through the month, the Hokies have powered through to win five straight games and sit 7-3 on the season.
“Being able to respond to those tough losses with resiliency and optimism that the best lacrosse was still ahead of us was key,” coach Kristen Skiera said. “We could have let those losses defeat us and make us feel like, ‘Well, we’re not living up to expectations we have of ourselves,’ but I think that we’ve handled it in a positive way and put our heads down and looked for ways to get better.”
This mentality has prevailed through Virginia Tech’s last five contests. The lineup featured one-goal wins against ACC foes Notre Dame and Pitt — including a three-overtime game against the latter — and dominant, double-digit victories over Radford, Winthrop and Furman.
Pushing through first-half adversity has been key to the Hokies’ wins. The team has often gone down by several goals against opponents in the first half, only to stage a full-scale, second-half comeback. Against James Madison, Virginia Tech trailed 6-4 at the half before pulling out a 10-9 victory. The Hokies were four goals behind both Notre Dame and Pitt at one point before going on explosive runs to secure narrow victories.
Skiera said she felt like Virginia Tech spent much of the first half in the “driver’s seat” against the Irish, working hard to overcome the four-goal deficit. The Hokies trailed by three goals at halftime, so she used the break to instill confidence in her program.
“Right before they took the field for the second half, I said, ‘Well, now it’s 0-0,’” Skiera said. “‘It’s a new game, and we have the opportunity to start this half the way we wanted to start the first half.’”
From there, Virginia Tech took over. The Hokies came out “hair on fire,” Skiera said, scoring the first three goals of the second half en route to a statement victory over the former No. 13 team in the country. The wins over James Madison and Pitt followed a similar storyline, with Virginia Tech coming out of halftime powerful to pave the way to a win.
The Hokies’ defense has also played a central role fueling second-half surges this season. Graduate goalkeeper Morgan Berman has come up clutch in tight scenarios, notching eight saves against Pitt through the second half and the game’s overtime periods, plus four saves in the final 30 minutes against James Madison.
Skiera said she can’t speak highly enough of Berman, calling her the program’s “energizer bunny.” While the defenders surrounding her may be young, Skiera said, they’ve adapted and played well in tough situations.
“As the game goes on, they settle more into the game plan and become a tougher unit, which is important,” Skiera said. “Certainly, we want to figure out how we can start that way, but I think they’re just a unit that’s evolving and needing permanence.”
The attack unit, however, is led by a mix of players with a wide range of playing experiences. Freshman midfielder Olivia Vergano leads the team with 27 goals, with sophomore midfielder Sophie Student trailing right behind her with 24.
Vergano said she’s enjoyed working with the team’s upperclassmen leaders, saying they’ve always been willing to help. She said the close bond the team shares has been key to their wins in tight contests.
“Everyone has an absurd amount of trust in one another that allows us to believe in ourselves and want to work hard for each other,” Vergano said. “Being so close knit and having that much chemistry allows us to trust each other in those big situations.”
NUMBERS OF NOTE
11-0
Georgetown took down George Washington 19-3 Saturday on a chilly, windy afternoon in D.C. Twelve players led the scoring surge for the Hoyas, powering the way to a double-digit victory. Georgetown’s victory was never in doubt from halftime on, as the Hoyas ended the game on an 11-0 run spanning 35 minutes of game time.
10
No. 16 Florida staged a significant upset against No. 5 Syracuse on Wednesday, taking the Orange down 14-10. The Gators never trailed once, fueled by hat tricks from sophomores Maggi Hall, Ashley Gonzalez and Danielle Pavinelli. Goalkeeper Sarah Reznick played a big part in the cage, holding the Orange to just 10 goals — their lowest scoring output all season.
14
Arizona State put away a history-making win against Colorado on Sunday. The Sun Devils won 20-6, led by graduate attacker Emily Glagolev’s six goals. Nine players scored in total, paving the way to the 14-goal margin of victory — the largest in program history. Fourteen was also the number of first-half goals the Sun Devils scored.
11
Maryland attacker Aurora Cordingley, a transfer from Johns Hopkins, continues to fit in seamlessly with the Terps. Cordingley was key to No. 3 Maryland’s 19-7 victory against Villanova on Sunday, notching 11 points (six goals, five assists) for a new career high. This total is just one point shy of the Terrapins’ single-game record of 12 points, which Jen Adams set in 2001.