After opening the season with two road games against Butler University and Indiana, the Virginia Tech women’s soccer team played their home opener in a non-conference match against James Madison Thursday night.
As they did in their two previous games, the Hokies kept a clean sheet and got a goal in each half in a 3-0 win at Thompson Field in a game they dominated and wore down the Dukes to improve to 2-0-1 on the young season and it was their seventh straight win over James Madison.
Taylor Bryan opened the scoring in the seventh minute when she converted a pass from Sophie Maltese. In the second half, Natalie Mitchell was taken down in the box and awarded a penalty kick. She converted from the spot with a shot inside the left post for a 2-0 lead.
https://twitter.com/HokiesWSoccer/status/1694872669261345150
After defending a James Madison corner in the 78th minute, Anna Weir got behind the Dukes’ defense, and with the keeper out of position, she was able to loft a shot into an open net for a 3-0 lead for her first career goal.
https://twitter.com/HokiesWSoccer/status/1694877001155264669
Virginia Tech carried the majority of the play and took control of the game with a physical attack, which handed the Dukes their first loss after two victories to open the season. The Hokies finished with a 20-7 advantage in shots, 10-4 on net and keeper Alia Skinner recorded her third clean sheet of the young season. Virginia Tech also held a 10-2 advantage on corners, which indicates how much of the play they carried.
Virginia Tech hits the road again on Sunday
The Hokies opened the season with a 3-0 victory over Butler on three second-half goals from Lauren Gogal, Samantha DeGuzman, and Mitchell. They then played to a scoreless draw against Indiana. Virginia Tech made the NCAA Tournament last season and lost their first game 2-0 to West Virginia. They return to the pitch Sunday afternoon with a 1 p.m. game in Washington, D.C. against Georgetown.