Despite holding its own vs. No. 8 Notre Dame on Friday night in Blacksburg, Virginia Tech men’s soccer failed to score for the first time all season, falling 1-0.
The Fighting Irish executed a long throw-in from defender Kyle Genebacher in the 72nd minute, which was sent into the Hokies’ 18-yard box and flicked across goal to forward Matthew Roou, who redirected the ball into the net.
Perfect Exectution
Roou's career-high 8th goal of the season gives ND the lead!
Watch on ACCN: https://t.co/02O5QubF1y pic.twitter.com/kPdhWIEIq5
— Notre Dame Men's Soccer (@NDMenSoccer) October 13, 2023
Despite Tech (3-5-4, 2-3-1 ACC) having more shots (14-6), corner kicks (8-2) and dominating time of possession, the Irish (9-1-3, 5-0-1 ACC) led in the one statistic that mattered: the scoreboard.
“They’re a very good, well put together college team,” Virginia Tech head coach Mike Brizendine told Tech Sideline after the match. “They can get you with set pieces, they can get you with long throws, they can defend well, they’re very technical, they work hard. That’s just a great recipe for success.
Notre Dame’s first big chance came on a penalty kick in the 54th minute after Hokies defender Noe Uwimana fouled Irish forward Daniel Russo in the box. Tech caught a break, though, when defender Paddy Burns’ shot bounced off the left post and rolled out of bounds.
“I thought that we had chances, I think it was more of us not capitalizing than defending,” Brizendine said. “They certainly made it difficult, but I thought we had some opportunities that we could have capitalized.”
Tech forward Marcos Escoe, who has one goal on the year, did not play due to an injury against Notre Dame, missing a match for the first time since Aug. 31. On a positive note, though, sophomore midfielder Misei Yoshizawa started his second game of the year and played 75 minutes after dealing with an injury for much of the season.
Despite the addition to the loss column, Tech’s third defeat in four games, Friday’s match was an improvement from Tuesday’s 1-1 draw vs. William & Mary. The Hokies allowed a goal in the first quarter of the match and struggled against a CAA team earlier in the week. Though the scoreboard didn’t show it, the loss to the Irish was a step in the right direction.
“Tonight was so different from Tuesday in every way,” Brizendine said.
The Hokies were seeking their second top-10 win of the season; their first was a road win at then-No. 5 Louisville on Sept. 15.
“We really get up against these ranked teams and it gives us a lot of confidence, even though we lost 1-0, that the quality is there… and the effort is there,” Hokies defender Willie Cardona said. “We just had to keep pushing forward.”
Tech is winless in its last four contests and currently sits fourth in the ACC Coastal Division with seven points. Its two remaining conference matches are against Virginia (10 points) and Duke (six) with two non-conference opportunities squeezed in between.
In the meantime, the Hokies are continuing to develop and improve, which they hope will pay off soon. The signs of progress are there.
“I think learning how to win is something, that’s a real statement,” Brizendine said. “I think we need to learn how to win and I think it’s coming with this group. We’re just not there and we’re not close to reaching the potential with this team. I hope that we can get there through the end of the season.
“… The future is extremely bright. I just hate going through these growing pains right now. I’m used to winning, our teams are used to winning, so it’s frustrating.”
Virginia Tech travels to Charlotte on Tuesday to play Queens on at 5 p.m. ET (ESPN+). The Hokies return to Thompson Field next Friday to host Virginia at 6 p.m. ET.
Box Score: No. 8 Notre Dame 1, Virginia Tech 0
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They played well and just missed on some great scoring chances. Go Hokies Soccer teams!
Embrace the positives. Improvement is on the way.