Virginia Men’s Soccer Downs No. 11 Pittsburgh 2-1
Last season, Reese Miller scored two goals in two games against Pittsburgh as the Cavaliers defeated the Panthers twice. On Friday night Miller, once again, was brilliant against Pittsburgh as he was instrumental on both sides of the ball to help Virginia pull off the upset.
On a crisp October night at Klöckner Stadium, Virginia once again displayed their dominance at home with a 2-1 victory over Pittsburgh as the Cavaliers have begun to find their groove amidst ACC play. The Panthers grabbed an early lead 15 minutes into the game before the Cavaliers rallied back with goals from Mouhameth Thiam and Stephen Annor to snag both points in a crucial ACC showdown.
In the opening stages, Pittsburgh dominated possession as the Cavaliers struggled to break through into the Panthers' final third. The pressure continued and concluded with a defensive meltdown, resulting in a 1-0 Pittsburgh lead. The goal came after a failed clearance left the ball loose in the box for Albert Thorsen to fire into the back of the net.
The first 15 minutes were sloppy for Virginia, with heavy touches, costly turnovers, and no answers to the Panthers' pressure.
Virginia’s offense, which started slow, would come from the left side for most of the first half, beginning with a lofted through ball from Reese Miller to a streaking Stephen Annor, who appeared to be in on goal before being flagged for offsides.
Minutes later Virginia’s offense finally emerged, with Miller finding Thiam making a run down the middle before passing it off to Annor, who lost the ball between his legs just before being in on goal.
Virginia continued to attack, and with 28 minutes left in the first half, Paul Wiese found Thiam in the middle, who buried his shot into the bottom left corner to bring the Cavaliers level 1-1.
Then, Annor nearly gave Virginia the lead after a through ball from Thiam left him with only the goalie to beat, but his shot was wide left. As the fast-paced first half ensued, the game began to intensify as a foul by Annor then saw two Pittsburgh players rush to confront him before the referee de-escalated the confrontation.
Immediately following the foul, Miller picked off a cross-field pass to set up a promising opportunity for Virginia that eventually fizzled out. On the counterattack by Pittsburgh, Miller received a yellow card for a foul to halt the Panthers' attack before being met with similar treatment to Annor, with a Pittsburgh player getting in his face.
Then, Miller again initiated an attack with a curving through ball to Thiam, who crossed the ball to Annor, who buried his shot to give Virginia a 2-1 lead. The goal was a product of exemplary passing by the Cavaliers that put the Hoos back in front with 18 minutes left in the first half.
"They play with a very high line, which is risky, especially with the speed and dangerous attacking players that we have, and it's how we got behind them and scored," said Coach George Gelnovatch.
Five minutes later, Leo Afonso stepped back under the lights of Klockner Stadium after missing the last six games due to injury. As the first half drew to a close, Virginia continued to counterattack with through balls in response to the high line from the Pittsburgh defense, leading to numerous offsides for Virginia.
Then, with less than five minutes left, a foul by Austin Rome gave Pittsburgh a free kick on the right side of the box, but the danger was effectively cleared. The Cavaliers responded with pressure that carried to the halftime whistle, with the attack commanded by Thiam and Parker Sloan (subbed in for Miller) on the right-hand side.
To open the second half, Virginia continued to possess and dictate the flow of the game. With Kome Ubogu playing as the lead striker, the Cavaliers fired in crosses towards Ubogu but could not double their advantage.
The momentum flipped 15 minutes into the second half, with Pittsburgh earning a free kick right outside the 18-yard box after a foul by Daniel Mangarov. The free kick forced Batrouni to make a diving save after a shot from Guilherme Feitosa.
A few possessions later, Abdoulaye Toure, forced Batrouni to make a point-blank save before the ball was cleared. The Panthers sent a barrage of shots, putting Virginia on the back foot, but Virginia managed to hold onto the lead.
After surviving the Panthers' pressure, Virginia began to fire back with multiple shots from outside the box before sitting back in the closing stages.
With less than 12 minutes to go, a foul by Thiam awarded Pittsburgh another free kick. With a chance to level it, Jackson Gilman fired away, but his shot was blocked by the Virginia wall, leading to a corner kick.
After nearly clearing the first corner, Pittsburgh earned another corner before Mateo Maillefaud skyed his shot over the goal to allow Virginia to catch its breath with less than 10 to play.
As the Cavaliers sat back, the Panthers searched for an equalizer, earning multiple free kicks, but would not find the answer as the Cavaliers hung on to secure a 2-1 victory. UVA now boasts an impressive 6-1-1 record at home as compared to 0-2-2 on the road. Their home field advantage has been significant, but the Hoos know they have to be better on the road.
"We got to be the villain over there and the heroes over here," said Reese Miller when asked about the Cavaliers' road struggles but dominance at home.
Despite the victory, Coach Gelnovatch announced that Holden Brown, who was injured a few weeks ago, is out indefinitely so Joey Batrouni will be between the pipes for the Hoos for the remainder of the season.
Virginia (7-3-3, 3-2-1 ACC) will look to extend its five-game unbeaten streak on Friday, October 20th against Virginia Tech in the Commonwealth Clash in Blacksburg, Virginia.
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