No. 24 Pitt Hits The Road To Battle No. 14 Virginia In ACC Quarterfinals Sunday

PITTSBURGH – The No. 6 seeded Pitt men's soccer team (8-3-5, 3-2-3 ACC) hits the road Sunday for a showdown with the No. 3 seed Virginia Cavaliers in the ACC Championship Quarterfinals at Klöckner Stadium in Charlottesville, VA. Sunday's game will kick at 4:00 pm on the ACC Network.

The winner of Sunday's game will take on the winner of No. 7 North Carolina at No. 2 Syracuse on Wednesday, Nov. 9 at either 5:00 pm or 7:00 pm on ACC Network.

FOLLOW ALONG

Sunday afternoon's contest will air live on ACC Network and can be found online HERE.
Live stats for Sunday's game can be found HERE.
Live updates throughout the game will also be posted on Twitter by following the Pitt men's soccer account @Pitt_MSOC.

THE SERIES – VIRGINIA

This meeting marks the 15th all-time between the two programs with Virginia holding the 8-4-2 edge in the series.
The Cavaliers won the last meeting earlier this year in Pittsburgh, 3-1. Overall, Pitt is 4-1-1 against the Cavaliers over the last six matchups.
Pitt is 3-4-1 all-time in games played in Charlottesville while going 3-0-1 over the last four.
Pitt has outscored Virginia 15-7 in the last six games against one another.

SCOUTING THE CAVALIERS

Virginia enters Sunday's match as the No. 3 seed in the ACC Tournament while being #14 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top-25 Poll.
The Cavaliers are led offensively by Leo Afonso who has six goals, three assists and 15 points on a team-high 58 shots. Afonso also leads the team with four game-winning goals.
Kome Ubogu is tied for the team lead with six goals while Phillip Horton has five goals, a team-high three assists and 13 points while going 2-for-2 on penalty kicks.
In goal, Holden Brown is enjoying a strong season as he owns a 9-4-3 record to go along with a 1.06 goals against average, .707 save percentage and seven shutouts.
The Cavaliers are coached by George Gelnovatch who is currently the seventh winningest active head coach in the NCAA (360 wins)

PANTHERS IN THE ACC CHAMPIONSHIP

This marks the seventh straight season the Panthers have qualified for the ACC Men's Soccer Championship. They earned the No. 6 seed and a home first round match after posting 12 points during the regular season.
The Panthers own a 6-7-0 overall record in ACC Championship matches while also owning a 3-1-0 record at home in the tournament.
Pitt and Virginia have meet in the ACC Tournament just once, a 2-0 road victory for the Panthers in 2018.
The Panthers have advanced to at least the ACC semifinals in each of the last three seasons.

SCORING FIRST A MUST FOR PITT

One of the keys to victory for the Panthers over the last four seasons has been scoring the first goal of the match.
Since 2019, Pitt owns a 40-1-3 overall record when they record the first goal of the match.
The Panthers are 7-0-1 this year when scoring the first goal while being just 1-3-3 when allowing the first goal of the match.
Pitt hasn't lost a game when scoring the first goal since falling to #2 Indiana 3-2 in double overtime on August 30, 2019.

Season             Record             Win %
2022                 7-0-1                .938
2021                 11-0-2              .923
2020-21            14-0-0              1.000
2019                 8-1-0                .889

SULLIVAN ON THE SPOT

Sophomore Michael Sullivan has earned more playing time of late thanks to his high motor and work rate.
The Pittsburgh native has enjoyed the best season of his young career as he has netted three goals, six points and 14 shots while earning a career-high nine starts in 15 games.
Last time out, Sullivan had the best game of his career as he netted a brace for the Panthers in their 4-1 double overtime win over NC State. Sullivan scored the first two goals of the night including the game-winner in the second minute of the first overtime period.
Over his last four games, Sullivan has netted three goals and eight shots while starting each match and playing an average of 59 minutes per contest.

UP NEXT

With a win, the Panthers would advance to the ACC Semifinals and play the winner of No. 2 Syracuse and No. 7 North Carolina.
With a loss, Pitt would have to wait until Monday, Nov. 14 for the NCAA Selection Show to see who they will be playing in the NCAA Tournament.

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No. 24 Pitt Hits The Road To Battle No. 14 Virginia In ACC Quarterfinals Sunday

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