No. 15 Virginia scored three goals during a five-minute stretch late in the second half on Saturday night to pull away from Syracuse, 4-0, in Charlottesville, Virginia.
The Orange fell to 4-6-2 overall and 1-3-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play, while Virginia improved to 6-2-2 with a 2-2-0 conference record.
Syracuse goalkeeper Maya Naimoli turned aside eight shots, matching her season high for the second consecutive match. The junior also made eight saves in Syracuse’s 2-1 victory over Pittsburgh on September 24.
Virginia opened the scoring 8:48 into the match when Giovana Canali headed in a corner kick from Ella Carter for her third goal of the season. Naimoli kept Syracuse within one throughout most of the afternoon, including a point-blank stop on Canali just over three minutes into the match. She recorded six of her eight saves during the opening 45 minutes.
The Cavaliers eventually broke the game open in the 80th minute. Aniyah Collier finished a transition opportunity after Addison Halpern won the ball near midfield and created the chance, giving Virginia a 2-0 advantage.
Just 3:14 later, Jordyn Hardeman struck from outside the penalty area, curling a left-footed shot into the upper corner. Hardeman then completed Virginia’s three-goal burst by converting a penalty kick, giving the Cavaliers three goals in just 5:06.
Virginia finished with a 23-1 advantage in shots and put 12 attempts on target. The Cavaliers also held a 6-1 edge in corner kicks and remained unbeaten all-time against Syracuse, improving to 10-0-1 in the series.
Syracuse will return home Thursday, October 8, to host another nationally ranked opponent when Stanford visits the Orange at 7 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to kyle@fingerlakes1.com.