In their fourth College Cup appearance, the Virginia Cavaliers (14-5-2) fell to the top-ranked Florida State Seminoles (15-0) in penalty kicks. The game was scoreless after two overtimes, and the Seminoles outscored the Hoos 3-0 in PKs. After a great tournament run for the Hoos where they defeated SIUE, #12 BYU, Rice, and #4 TCU, the unranked team could not continue their impressive streak against the number one team as Florida State’s perfect season continues.
The Cavaliers had a 6-1 shot advantage after the first half, but weren’t able to capitalize. Then, Florida State came alive in the second half and controlled the pace on offense. The Seminoles had eight total corner kicks in regulation and took seven shots in the second half, but the Cavalier defense stayed strong to prevent a goal. UVA’s senior goalkeeper Laurel Ivory made a save in the 71st minute that represented the first shot on goal for FSU. Meanwhile, Lia Godfrey had 4 shots and 2 shots on goal as the main offensive force for the Hoos.
The first overtime was pretty uneventful with FSU getting two more shots, and the second overtime had a close play where UVA’s Rebecca Jarrett crossed the ball to Diana Ordonez for a header, but freshman goalie Cristina Roque made the save and the game headed to penalty kicks.
Florida State had previously advanced in their last six playoff penalty kicks, and they pushed it to seven straight after making quick work of UVA and winning 3-0. FSU’s Clara Robbins, Emily Madril, and Gabby Carle all scored and goalie Cristina Roque made two saves to lead the Seminoles to the championship contest.
After an interesting season due to COVID-19, the Hoos end the year after being the last unranked team standing and putting together an impressive playoff run.
