Virginia Advances to ACC Field Hockey Semifinals with 3-2 Win Over Boston College

Nov. 1, 2007

NEWTON, Mass. - The Virginia Cavaliers, the ACC's No.5 seed in the tournament, advanced to the championship's second round this afternoon with a hard-fought 3-2 overtime win against fourth-seed Boston College at the Newton Campus Turf Field in Newton, Mass. Scoring the game-winner for the Cavs was Lauren Elstein, a sophomore defender from Fredericksburg, Va.

Jumping out to a fast start, the Eagles put the game's first goal on the board just 46 seconds into the first half when sophomore forward Chelsey Feole capitalized on the game's first corner. Assisting on the goal was junior midfielder Katie Quaglia and junior forward Bob Dirks.

Just three minutes later, the Cavaliers evened the game when sophomore Traci Ragukas batted the ball past Boston College goalkeeper Julia Berkowitz to make the score 1-1.

The teams remained tied through the end of the first half and into the second when Dirks, an all-conference selection for the Eagles, made the score 2-1 on a short goal on a feed from a corner at 42:32.

At 68:01, with just two minutes remaining in regulation, Virginia tied the game at 2-2 in what proved to be a season-saving goal by Ragukas. Then, in overtime, Elstein ended the game when she punched in a goal off a scramble in front of the net just one minute into the period.

"We knew we would have some opportunities," said Virginia head coach Michele Madison. "We are glad we converted them. We are happy to come away with a win."

For the game, the Cavaliers posted 21 total shots, including 13 shots on goal. Leading the Cavs was Ragukas, a midfielder/forward from Sweet Valley, Pa. With her two goals in this game, she now has 12 for the season.

Tomorrow the Cavaliers will face another stiff test when they take on North Carolina, the nation's top-ranked team, at 4:00 p.m. The winner of that game will advance to the ACC Tournament finals, which will be played at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.