CARY, N.C. — It took perseverance and penalty kicks for Georgetown to overcome the University of Virginia in soccer on Sunday and capture the Hoyas third NCAA Championship as a school.
It was a back-and-forth game at the WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., that took overtime to complete after Virginia tied the game 3-3 in the 86th minute of play.
Georgetown and Virginia were unable to score in the overtime periods, leading to penalty kicks for both teams. The Hoyas freshman goalkeeper Thomas Romero would come up with a big save during UVA's seventh penalty kick, capturing the championship for his team.
Both teams started the game scoring quickly, with Virginia connecting first with a 25-yard strike from Joe Bell in the 10th minute of the game.
Georgetown would follow with a goal in the 16th minute by Paul Rothrock and a goal in the 22nd minute by freshman Daniel Wu, who is from Cary, N.C. Wu's goal not only gave the Hoyas a lead but also gave him his first goal of the season.
UVA (21-2-2 overall) would score twice in the second half, while Georgetown (20-1-4 overall) would only score once more, evening the game by the end of regulation before the Hoyas went on to win.
Before facing Virginia, the Hoyas beat Pittsburgh, Lousiville, Washington, and Standford as part of surviving and advancing through the NCAA tournament.
Georgetown finished the season by winning its last 17 games. In the process, it ended Virginia's 10-game unbeaten streak that it had going into Sunday's final.
According to Georgetown's athletic department, the matchup between the Hoyas and UVA was the first time two teams from the Washington, D.C., region have competed in the finals since 1959.
The players and coaches from Georgetown are expected to be back for a gathering at the school Monday afternoon to celebrate the successful season.