The rundown: Price's hat trick spells 5-1 win over Louisville
Blacksburg, VA — On a misty Thursday night at Thompson Field, the Hokies were looking to bounce back after their disappointing 3-1 loss to Boston College last weekend.
Thanks to the help of a variety of goal types and a stunning hat trick from Taylor Price, the Hokies evened their ACC tally to .500.
The biggest thing skeptics have complained about is Tech's ability to put the ball in the net. At times, even though the linkup play was on point and opportunities looked unmissable, the Hokies somehow faltered when it mattered most.
On Thursday, however, things took a sharp 180-degree turn, not just because of Price's three goals but rather because of how coach “Chugger” Adair's team took their chances.
“Well, I think Louisville does a good job of compacting space in midfield. So, when you stretch them out with a couple longer balls, then you can maybe find some space underneath. So trying to mix that balance, we'd like to play through the midfield and we try to mix it up,” said the former forward. “Then we can try to take what they're giving us and then also try to spread them out with some space in midfield.”
Tech found two of their goals thanks to long balls from the Hokie backline, which bypassed that stubborn Cardinal midfield, along with one from their staple set-piece play that has grown into Tech's biggest route to net, one from winning the ball high, with the last being tapped in after a comedy of errors led to Price's most prolific day as a Hokie.
“She comes and plays every day. She plays with passion, determination. So we love her, and she's like the epitome of the Virginia Tech team athlete,” Adair said, referring to junior midfielder Emma Pelkowski. The junior bossed the night, picking passes from every direction while also looking neat on the ball despite often operating solely in the midfield underneath the bright LED lights that circled Thompson.
While ACC play is just now underway and there is still copious amounts of time for things to change for better or worse, a 5-1 in-conference win will always get things churning in the right direction.
Up next for the Hokies is a trip to Coral Gables in South Florida next Thursday at 8 p.m.
