Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, December 10, 1994 TAG: 9412140065
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DAVIDSON, N.C. LENGTH: Medium
Apparently, the Cavaliers aren't too shabby when they give up an early score.
After falling behind for the first time in three visits to Richardson Field at Davidson College, UVa rallied for a 2-1 victory over Rutgers in the Division I men's semifinals on Friday afternoon.
The Cavaliers (21-3-1) will bid for their fourth consecutive NCAA championship when they meet Indiana (23-2) at 1:30 p.m. Sunday. The Hoosiers defeated UCLA 4-1 in the second semifinal.
The first game Friday was scarcely nine minutes old when Rutgers midfielder Andreas Maier curled a corner kick in the direction of defender Kevin O'Connell, whose header beat Virginia goaltender Mark Peters on the far side. It was O'Connell's first goal of the season.
``I think, when we went up 1-0, that we felt confident,'' Rutgers striker Rob Johnson said, ``but you can never relax, especially with the kind of talent Virginia has. We knew they would come back at us.''
The Scarlet Knights' lead lasted until 23:56 remained in the half, when Tain Nix blocked an attempted Rutgers clear and fed Damian Silvera. It was the first NCAA Tournament goal for Silvera, who shares a playoff record with seven assists.
Defender Brandon Pollard served the ball into the 18-yard box on UVa's first goal and it was his cross that freshman Billy Walsh directed past Rutgers goalie Steve Widdowson to make it 2-1 with 36:18 remaining.
``This was the most special goal of the season for me,'' said Walsh, from Chatham Township, N.J. ``I've been going to Rutgers games since I was 13 years old, but this is why I came to Virginia, man.
``I got an opening and basically threw my leg out, hoping for an opening because the goalie wasn't ready for it. All I got on the ball was the bottom of my shoe. I think I kicked it with my cleats.''
Peters grew increasingly more steady after the early goal and finished with four saves, twice stopping Rocky Strazella from close range late in the first half.
``It was important for me to get a couple of saves because you don't want to come in at half with one goal on one shot,'' Peters said. ``For the first 20 minutes, the defense did a good job of bailing me out because I was a liability.''
Rutgers' best chance to tie the score came with 26:42 remaining, when Johnson was either pulled down - or tackled cleanly by UVa's Sean Feary - in the penalty box.
``I really feel it [merited] a penalty kick,'' Johnson said, ``but when you get down to the final four, I don't think they want the game decided on a play like that.''
UVa was similarly disturbed by a late penalty that will keep midfielder Mike Fisher, the college player of the year in Virginia, out of the championship game.
Fisher was cited for a delay-of-game on a free kick with 1:38 remaining and received a caution. Because it was his third ``yellow card'' of the postseason, he was suspended for UVa's next game.
The men's soccer committee considers the ACC Tournament to be the postseason, so the ``yellow card'' Fisher received in the championship game is added to the cautions he received Friday and in the quarterfinals last Sunday against James Madison.
``You got to play with the cards you are dealt,'' said UVa coach Bruce Arena, with no pun intended. ``I don't think that's the kind of call you make - it surprised me - but what are you going to do.
``The NCAA Committee has made a mistake with the way they do the postseason rule because you're actually punished the farther you go. It's unfortunate, but you know the bureaucracy in making a rule at the NCAA level. If it makes sense, it generally doesn't fly.''
UVa's midfield unit already had been depleted by the loss of freshman Andriy Shapowal, who suffered a broken foot in the 12th game., but Arena feels there is room for improvement over Friday's performance.
``I don't think Virginia played its best game,'' he said, ``but I was proud of the effort when we got down a goal. I wasn't concerned because I knew it was the kind of game where we would have a lot of chances.''
The Scarlet Knights played the same all-out style that got them in the tournament. Rutgers had a losing record going into the Atlantic-10 Tournament, but had won six straight games before Friday and finished 14-10-3.
by CNB