Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1530198
34 CAVALIER CORNER cavalier profile YUNA MCCORMACK Second-Year • Soccer When the Cavaliers opened the 2024 season, it was with high expectations as a team and also for second-year midfielder Yuna McCormack. After being named an All-ACC Freshman Team selection last sea- son, McCormack seemed ready to take the next step for UVA. But opportunity knocked, and she was tabbed to represent the United States on the international stage at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in Colombia. The second-year played the first two games for Virginia, assisting on the game-winning goal in the season opener against Towson, and then packed her bags to don the kit of the U.S. U20 Women's National Team. In Colombia, McCormack played in every game for the U.S. and was instrumental in the team winning a bronze medal. She deliv- ered the game-winning assist in the quarterfinals and added goals against Morocco and Paraguay in group play — including the game- winning goal against Morocco. Bronze medal in hand, she then packed up and made the trip home and had to immediately reinte- grate herself with the Cavaliers. "It's definitely tough, just being with a different team for a whole month and then coming back," McCormack said of her return. "But after two games I feel like I got back into it, and I'm in a good posi- tion now." McCormack came back from Colombia and made her presence felt right out of the gates, scoring a goal for the Cavaliers in her first game back at No. 4 North Carolina. The midfielder raced down the field on a combination play with Maggie Cagle and received the ball for a strike that — at the time — put Virginia on top 2-1. Her return was also fortuitous as the Cavaliers would lose fifth-year midfielder and team captain Alexis Theoret to injury in that same game. McCormack's return helped the Cavaliers not miss a beat with a scoring threat and pres- ence to help solve pressure in the midfield while the Hoos made a run to lock up an NCAA Tournament bid. McCormack delivered an assist in the Hoos' victory over North Carolina State and then hit the equalizing goal in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament against Princeton, a 2-1 victory for the Cavaliers. — Bill Bunting • Photo courtesy UVA