After a disappointing 2020 season, the Virginia field hockey team returned to the NCAA Tournament last season and finished 12-9. The Cavaliers went all the way to the ACC Championship before falling to North Carolina, and then lost to Maryland in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament to end their season. They did lose some valuable pieces, as their top three players in minutes played from last season are gone. If they want to replicate last season’s success and push deeper into the NCAA Tournament, they will need to replace this trio and exceed their production.

Lead point-scorer Amber Ezechiels, Makayla Gallen, and Rachel Robinson combined for 59 starts out of 63 possible games. Ezechiels was named an All-American three times, including a 2021 first-team selection, and All-ACC three times, two of which on the first team. Gallen played in 101 games, the most of any Cavalier in history and was named to the All-ACC Tournament Team for 2021. Robinson was named as an All-American three times as well and was the first four-year captain in program history.

This trio consistently put Virginia in the best position to win due to talent and leadership, so the Cavaliers have to find new players to take the next step.

For starters, the Cavaliers will have stability in goal with Tyler Kennedy. In her freshman season, Kennedy started in 17 games with an 8-8 record. She had the second-best save percentage in the ACC (.735) and posted two shutouts. On the season, Kennedy averaged 3.16 saves per game and allowed 1.18 goals against per game. When a team loses a bunch of valuable pieces, it helps to keep consistency to protect your goal. Kennedy offers this and could play a bigger role with a year of experience under her belt.

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