The Virginia Tech Women's Soccer team (11-5-3) has punched its ticket to the 2024 NCAA Tournament after missing last year's tournament. They will open by hosting Tennessee (9-6-4) at Thompson Field on Friday, November 15, at 7 p.m. EST.
The Hokies have had a memorable season. They have navigated their way through the ACC—one of the toughest conferences in women's soccer—rallying to victory against nationally ranked opponents, earning their first ACC Tournament appearance since 2020, and hosting an NCAA Tournament game as a No. 7 seed, something Tech has failed to do since 2021.
This has been a bounce-back season for the Hokies, who had faltered on the field in the past few years.
From 2011—when first-year head coach Chugger Adair took over for the Hokies—to 2019, Tech won 11+ games in eight of nine seasons, only failing to reach double-digit wins in 2017. During that same period, the Hokies earned an ACC Tournament appearance three times and an NCAA Tournament appearance seven times, consistently competing at the highest levels of collegiate soccer.
However, from the 2020 season onward, the Hokies have lost their step compared to the success earned in the 2010s. In the past four seasons (2020-2023), Tech recorded the first two seasons with a losing record under Adair — (8-9) in 2020 and (7-8-3) in 2023 — failed to reach the ACC postseason three times and was unable to punch its ticket to the NCAA Tournament twice.
Yet, Tech seemed to erase previous seasons' struggles with a magical season, both in and out of conference, highlighted by the Hokies' dominance in many of their wins. It also helps to have a healthier roster from the start of the season.
“Last year, we had a lot more injuries to our group early on, and we never could get through that,” Adair said. “Leadership has been good with this group as well; I think they are buying into what we have been trying to do; it's a good cohesive team this year.”
After dropping back-to-back games to Liberty and Northwestern in early September, the Hokies flipped a switch and rolled through conference play only losing two more games to Boston College and in-state rival Virginia for the remainder of the season.
Tech recorded shutouts in 10 of its 19 games including five of its 10 ACC games, a testament to Hokies’ keeper Lauren Hargrove, who was responsible for each shutout. Her efforts earned her ACC Defensive Player of the Week twice in Tech’s 12-week season. Hokies defender Allie George also earned ACC Defensive Player of the Week for her efforts early in the season, capturing two goals in two shutout victories against Loyola Maryland and High Point.
Tech’s 10 shutouts included a 2-0 victory over then No. 7 Notre Dame, where Hargrove saved six of the Fighting Irish’s attempts on goal. This win was the proverbial cherry on top of the Hokies season; however, if there is one thing better than knocking off the No. 7 team in the nation, it is taking down the No. 6 team.
That is precisely what the Hokies did earlier on in a memorable 3-2 come-from-behind victory over the defending national champions, No. 6 Florida State, courtesy of a game-winning goal from forward Taylor Price.
Price has had a phenomenal season. She also recorded the 12th hat trick in the Hokies' program history, scoring three goals in a 5-1 victory over Louisville on September 26. Price leads the team in goals (6) and points (14), and is the biggest attacking threat for the Hokies.
Not only were both of these victories conference wins for the Hokies (6-2-2 ACC), but they were also standout wins on a national platform that earned Tech recognition it hadn't seen in its previous few seasons. Those were critical for them to earn a spot in the ACC Tournament and a home game in the NCAA Tournament.
“You always want to get those signature wins, that's something that we build off of,” Adair said. “We have a group that is resilient, and wants to fight.
The Hokies are one of nine ACC teams punching their tickets to the tournament, joining No. 1 Duke, No. 1 Florida State, No. 2 North Carolina, No. 2 Wake Forest, No. 3 Stanford, No. 4 Notre Dame, No. 4 Virginia, and California.
Since 2018, an ACC team has reached the NCAA final each year of the tournament. However, Florida State has been the only program to capture a victory on the game's biggest stage, taking home the hardware in 2018, 2021, and 2023.
After knocking off the Seminoles earlier this season—who once again hold a top seed in the NCAA Tournament—and defeating the Fighting Irish, the Hokies have proved they fare well against higher-ranked teams. That certainly will provide a boost in their belief that they can make a deep run.
Another statistic in the Hokies' favor is Tech’s home-field advantage at Thompson Field, which the Hokies will return to this Friday when they face the Lady Vols. Tech is 7-2 when it plays in Blacksburg, compared to 4-3-3 when facing opponents on the road.
“This fandom that we have here is so supportive, and having them show out for us, stay the entire game, and not give up on us is so important,” Price said. “Just feeding off their energy and hearing them go crazy, we build off that momentum.”
Furthermore, Tennessee has struggled on the road, with a 2-4-1 record away from Knoxville this season.
The last time the Hokies hosted a first round NCAA Tournament game was in 2021 when Tech knocked off Ohio State 3-1. They would crash out in the next round with a loss at Arkansas.
Despite Tech’s back-to-back losses leading into Tennessee — falling to Virginia in the regular season finale and UNC in the first round of the ACC Tournament — the Hokies will turn a new leaf before entering the NCAA Tournament. Tech has not lost three games in a row this season and is not looking to see that change on college women's soccer's biggest stage, as they look to advance past the first round for the first time since 2021.
