The Shadow
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Cavaliers twice rallied from one-goal deficits, but an 89th-minute strike from Aidan Morrison proved to be the difference as No. 11 Virginia (0-2) fell to No. 16 High Point (2-0) by a score of 3-2 on Monday night (Aug. 24) at Klöckner Stadium.
Goals (Assist)
12’ High Point – Lugo (Miles, Baafi)
36’ Virginia – Matshazi (Oulouheu, Pop)
43’ High Point – Sarantakos (Caron)
49’ Virginia – Oulouheu
89’ High Point – Morrison (Sarantakos)
The Cavaliers dominated the possession battle in the opening 45 minutes while registering eight shot attempts with three on target. High Point registered only two attempts at goal in the opening half but took full advantage of their chances scoring a pair of goals.
After Daniel Lugo opened the scoring for High Point with a right footed shot from six yards out, Virginia leveled the score as Arnold Matshazi found the back of the net for the first time as a Cavalier. The Panthers regained the lead just minutes before the break as Nick Sarantakos scored on a breakaway with assist from his goalkeeper.
Virginia responded swiftly in the second half when Sami Oulouheu tucked a shot from the left wing inside the far post to level the score at 2-2. The Cavaliers continued to ramp up the pressure outshooting the Panthers 12-3 in the second half. However, after Isaac Mwakutuya was sent off for a pair of yellow cards just over a minute apart, High Point’s Aidan Morrison scored the winning goal only minutes before the final whistle.
Additional Notes:
- Arnold Matshazi scored his first goal as a Cavalier and the 13th of his career
- Drew Serafino made his first start as a Cavalier and the 20th of his career
- Sami Oulouheu marked a career-high three points (1g, 1a)
- Oulouheu’s goal marks his first since Sept. 19, 2025 (vs Wake Forest / W, 6-3)
- Sebastian Pop recorded the first assist of his career
- Virginia falls to 4-4-1 in the all-time series with High Point and suffers its first defeat to the Panthers at Klöckner Stadium. (Virginia drops to 4-3 against High Point in games played in Charlottesville)
- Virginia outshot High Point 20-5 on the night
- High Point scored three goals on their five shots, all of which were on target
- Six of Virginia’s 20 shots were placed on frame
What They Said:
“We made some uncharacteristic mistakes today. But we fought back and like the UCLA game in the second half we started to turn the screws, got our second goal, we think the third one is coming, and we have a young guy that picks up two yellow cards in thirty seconds which takes the air out of the game. In a game like this, you probably close it out with a man down and its 2-2, but we didn’t get it done…We’re going to have to watch the film and dig ourselves out.” – Head Coach George Gelnovatch
Up Next:
The Cavaliers will be back in action on Friday (Oct. 28) when they host American at Klöckner Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on ACC Network Extra (ACCNX).
