Hokie ClubBLACKSBURG, Va. – The Virginia Tech men’s soccer team will play host to No. 19 Virginia at Thompson Field on Friday night in another ACC clash.
The game against the Cavaliers will be the fifth match in seven games against a ranked opponent for the Hokies this season. Tech is 1-2-2 against ranked opponents this year including a win against No. 17 Syracuse and ties against No. 1 North Carolina and No. 16 Clemson.
The Hokies are coming off of a narrow 1-0 loss to No. 2 Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish scored in the 90th minute to earn the win. Senior goalkeeper Kyle Renfro continued his impressive 2013 campaign with seven saves in the match.
Renfro has secured four shutouts in goal for Tech this season moving his career total to 13, good enough for the third spot in the record books. Renfro has also eclipsed 270 saves during his tenure at Tech and is only 19 saves away from the fifth overall spot in the record books.
Virginia comes into the match with a 6-3-3 (2-2-3 ACC) record. The Cavaliers boast wins over VCU and Syracuse as well as ties with Maryland, Duke and NC State.
Junior Eric Bird leads the Cavaliers with 13 points on the strength of five goals and three assists. Freshman Riggs Lennon is just behind Bird with four goals. 10 other players have scored goals for Virginia this season.
Goalkeeper Jeff Gal has started every game for the Cavaliers this season allowing 14 goals in 12 games. Gal has a 1.13 goals against average and a .659 save percentage.
Game time is slated for 7 p.m. In support of National Bullying Prevention month, fans are encouraged to wear orange to unite against bullying. Free orange rally towels will be given to the first 300 fans in attendance. Live stats will be available for the match.