Hokies to face No. 2 Wake Forest in the Elite Eight

BLACKSBURG- The Virginia Tech men’s soccer team (13-4-4) will travel to Wake Forest (17-2-3) on Saturday for the Quarterfinal matchup. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. in Spry Stadium.

The Hokies upset the Indiana Hoosiers in the Sweet Sixteen last Sunday winning it 2-1 in overtime. The golden goal came from Forrest White seven minutes into overtime to send Tech to the Elite Eight. Brendan Moyers got the Hokies on the board first and the lead going into halftime. Ben Lundgaard held steady in net with nine saves, a season high for the junior goalkeeper.

Tech is currently enjoying their fifth tournament berth and first since 2007. Tech earned their at-large bid after playing eight Top 25 teams this regular season, fifth most in the nation. The Hokies were undefeated in non-conference play and were ranked in the Top 25 for nine straight weeks. More than half the team has now had at least one goal this season with 16 Hokies finding the back of the net. This will be Mike Brizendine’s first December game ever as a head coach.

Scouting Wake Forest

Wake Forest, reining ACC Champion, was seeded second in the NCAA Tournament Bracket following their successful regular season. The Deacs are now on an 11-game win streak after defeating SIUE and Coastal Carolina in the NCAA Tournament.

This is Wake’s second straight season advancing to the quarterfinals. The Deacs were also seeded second in the 2007 tournament when they went on to win the National Championship.

Senior captain Jacori Hayes leads the team in goals (8), points (19) and game winners (5). This season, Wake Forest tallied 12 shutouts and have only allowed 11 goals. The only loss the team has in Spry Stadium in 2016 was the first game of the season against St. Louis.

The Last Meeting

These teams last met in the 2014 regular season in Blacksburg. The Hokies won it 2-0. All-time series sits with Wake at 16-3-2. In 2007, the Hokies faced Wake Forest in the semifinals of the College Cup. The Deacs defeated them 2-0 and went on to win it all.

The match will be broadcasted on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app. The winner will travel to Houston for the College Cup. The semifinal match would be against the winner of Clemson and Denver on Dec. 9.

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