CARY, N.C. — The Maryland men's soccer team will be playing for the ACC tournament championship on Sunday after beating rival Virginia 2-0 Friday.
Senior Jason Herrick scored two goals as the Terps avenged a pair of 2009 postseason losses to the Cavaliers. Herrick scored in each half as Maryland reached the final against top-seeded North Carolina, a 1-0 winner over Boston College Friday night.
The Terps and Tar Heels, unbeaten in 12 straight, will square off Sunday at 1 p.m. at WakeMed Soccer Park.
After controlling possession much of the first half, Herrick finally found the back of the net to put Maryland on top at 36:34. Casey Townsend's shot was blocked by the Virginia backline and Herrick recovered the rebound and blasted it past Cavaliers goalie Diego Restrepo.
Goalkeeper Zac MacMath of the Terps preserved the shutout with a penalty kick save in the 44th minute. Ari Dimas's groundball attempt was stopped by MacMath to keep the score at 1-0 heading into halftime.
Herrick added his second goal at 71:06. A foul by Dimas set up a Maryland free kick and Taylor Kemp quickly served it to Herrick who cashed in.
MacMath, with four saves, earned his 12th shutout of the year. The Terps have won 12 consecutive matches heading into Sunday's title bout.
"It feels great to move on and play on Sunday," head coach Sasho Cirovski said. "I thought this was a highly-competitive match indicative of the rivalry we have with Virginia. I think in games like these you need your players make plays. I thought today we had some of our key players make key plays. They got us last year and we are fortunate to be on the positive side this year so far."