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SYRACUSE, N.Y. - A dominant four-goal first half lifts the No. 14 Virginia Tech women’s soccer team over Syracuse on the road. Murielle Tiernan and Candace Cephers scored two goals, and Shannon Mayrose added another in the 5-0 road win.

“It was a great result for us and the girls showed some great intensity and passion on a wet and rainy night,” head coach Chugger Adair said. “We showed a lot of quality in the attacking third which we haven’t had of late. Our shot-to-goal ratio was good in the first half and we were able to put the game away early.”

Entering the game, the Hokies (13-3, 4-4 ACC) were eager to bounce back from their recent losses to Wake Forest and No. 2 Florida State. Syracuse (5-9-3, 2-6 ACC) was also hungry for a win, coming off of three recent losses.

A few Hokies got their first start of their careers today, as Adair adjusted his lineup for their road test. Laila Gray started at forward, earning her first start, alongside Kallie Peurifoy and Kaylyn Smith got the nod at keeper, making her second start of her career.

In the 13th minute, Tech got on the board when freshman Laila Gray dribbled the ball down the right side of the attack then sent a ball to the slashing Tiernan. Tiernan corralled the ball and fired a shot low past the diving Syracuse keeper to put Tech up 1-0.

Only a few minutes later, the Orange nearly answered with a goal of their own but a shot from Stephanie Skilton hit the post on the shot attempt.

Tech added to their lead in the 17th minute, Tiernan picked up her second goal of the game to put Tech up 2-0. It was her 11th goal of the year, tying her season-high from last season. Both 11-goal seasons put Tiernan in the fourth spot in Tech’s record book for goals in a season.

Wasting no time to put the game away, the Hokies added their third goal of the game in the 25th minute. Defender Morgan Conklin began the scoring opportunity by sending a dangerous cross near the goal. Mayrose headed the cross from Conklin to Cephers, who waited nearby for a goal chance. Cephers volleyed the pass off of Mayrose’s head into the goal to put Tech up 3-0.

In the 37th minute, Tech kept the offensive surge going, scoring on a corner kick. Danielle King sent in the corner that met the head of Cephers. A Syracuse defender knocked out Tech’s first attempt and Mayrose picked up the rebound, volleying the ball with her back to the goal for her sixth of the year to put the Hokies up 4-0.

Tech’s four goals in the first half matched the highest total in one half for Tech since the opening game of 2013 when they beat High Point, 7-1.

The second-half was much quieter on the stat sheet as both teams were held scoreless for nearly the whole period. The Hokies kept the ball in their possession for much of the half and created a few chances on goal.

Only a minute into play, Meier moved into the box with a few shifty dribbles then passed the ball to Peurifoy who made a cut towards the goal. Peurifoy flicked the ball to the goal, but the post prevented the fifth Hokie goal from going in.

With only seconds left to play, the Hokies earned a penalty kick and Cephers put away her second of the game to put Tech up 5-0.

In goal for Tech, Kaylyn Smith picked up the shutout win, recording six saves.

Next on the schedule for the Hokies is a home match against No. 3 Virginia at Thompson Field at 5 p.m. on Sunday.

For updates on Virginia Tech women's soccer, follow the Hokies on Twitter Follow @VT_WSoccer