CARY, N.C. -- Wake Forest has at least a little experience
playing in the NCAA College Cup. That's more than the other three
teams in soccer's final four can claim.
While Cup newcomers Massachusetts, Ohio State and Virginia Tech
are preparing for their first berths in the national semifinals,
the Demon Deacons hope to build on last year's brief appearance --
the only other time they've made it this far.
"We do think it helps, and it's good to have that experience
under our belt having been here before and gone through these types
of events, seeing the media and everything that comes along with
the College Cup," Wake Forest defender Julian Valentin said
Thursday. "We're hoping to use that experience in a positive way,
and hopefully we'll be a little more prepared this year and we'll
make a good run at it."
The second-seeded Demon Deacons, the highest remaining seed,
take on Atlantic Coast Conference rival and No. 11 seed Virginia
Tech in the first of Friday's two semifinals, followed by a matchup
of No. 5 seed Ohio State and unseeded Massachusetts, the only
remaining team that did not receive a first-round bye.
Wake Forest lost the only previous College Cup match in school
history, 4-3 in the tiebreaker to eventual national champion
UC-Santa Barbara last year.
Now the Demon Deacons (20-2-2), who lost to Boston College in
the ACC title game, face a rematch with the Hokies. Their first
meeting ended in a 3-all tie -- a game in which Virginia Tech twice
rallied from two-goal deficits.
"I think we found out in that game that we had something
special," Hokies coach Oliver Weiss said. "That helped our team
with motivation and also with confidence."
Virginia Tech (14-3-5) is coming off a 1-0 quarterfinal victory
at third-seeded Connecticut, and has matched the school record for
victories in a season.
"Our players have just matured, taken more responsibility on
their own," Weiss said. "We've become a very tight-knit group
this year, more so than in years past."
In the other semifinal, UMass will play its second seeded
opponent when the Minutemen take on Ohio State (16-3-5). The
Buckeyes have not lost in 14 straight games, took the Big Ten
title, earned their first top-16 seed and eliminated UC-Santa
Barbara in the third round.
"What we do best and what our players have grown to understand
is we defend as a team," Buckeyes coach John Bluem said. "We have
instilled in the players a strong feeling of doing our jobs
defensively. You will see a well-organized team that is committed
to getting a shutout and stopping the opposition's chances. At the
same time, we are a team that can hurt you on the attacking side of
the game in a number of ways."
UMass (17-7-1) upset No. 1 seed Boston College in the second
round, then won twice on its home field to reach its first College
Cup.
The Minutemen ended the regular season unranked, but have come
on strong in the postseason, winning the Atlantic 10 and beating
Illinois-Chicago in the quarterfinals to extend their unbeaten
streak to seven.
"I don't think anyone realized how big (the College Cup) was
until we walked into the stadium and saw the field and
everything," forward Bryan Hogan said.
The semifinal winners play Sunday for the national
championship.