Virginia Tech defensive lineman Antwaun Powell-Ryland, a former Norcom High standout, has been named the Bednarik Award Player of the Week by the Maxwell Football Club and the Walter Camp National FBS Player of the Week.

Powell-Ryland led the Hokies with four sacks and seven tackles, including four for a loss, in Virginia Tech’s 37-17 victory over Old Dominion on Saturday in Norfolk.

He is one of only four Tech players to record four sacks in a game, joining J.C. Price, Morgan Roane and Norfolk native Bruce Smith. Powell-Ryland and Smith are the only two players to have at least four sacks in multiple games.

MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

Tides game postponed; doubleheader set

The first game of the Norfolk Tides’ final homestand of the season — against the Nashville Sounds — has been postponed Tuesday because of rain. It has been rescheduled as part of a single-admission doubleheader Wednesday, starting at 5:35 p.m. at Harbor Park.

Gates will open at 4:30 p.m. The doubleheader will feature two seven-inning games.

HOCKEY

Admirals release giveaway schedule

The Norfolk Admirals have announced their giveaway schedule for the upcoming season.

Admirals car magnets will be the first giveaway, which comes on the team’s season opener Oct. 18 against the Adirondack Thunder at Scope. It will be a rematch of last year’s ECHL North Division semifinals.

Other promotions include:

Nov. 15: Hat giveaway

Nov. 29: Glow giveaway

Dec. 13: Scarf giveaway

Jan. 17: Travel cup giveaway

Feb. 21: Camo hat giveaway

March 7: Trading cards giveaway

April 12: Tote bag giveaway

Briefly

• Old Dominion’s Michael Eberle has been named the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Week in men’s soccer. He scored the game-winning goals to lead the Monarchs to wins over William & Mary and George Mason.
• Virginia Tech rose four spots to No. 13 in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 men’s poll. James Madison is 21st. In the women’s poll, UVA dropped from No. 2 to No. 14 after suffering its first loss of the season to Wake Forest.
• Christopher Newport tied for third at the Kinder-Williams Invitational men’s golf tournament on Tuesday in Harrisonburg. Brian O’Dea led the Captains with a 1-over 73.

Hampton interim head coach Trent Boykin, though, opts for more formal attire, typically wearing a button-down shirt and a necktie with a Hampton vest. Boykin said the inspiration comes from his former college head coach, Jim Tressel.

“Tressel always wore a tie,” Boykin said. “I don’t know, I just always felt like that, as a head coach, everybody has their style, I guess. Being around Tressel for five years as a player, and then a year with him on his coaching staff — kind of just following his deal. Even with Coach Terry Bowden, when I was with Coach Bowden, that was something that he wore, too.”

Boykin played under Tressel during his run at Youngstown State and helped lead the Penguins to three Division I-AA national titles in 1991, 1993 and 1994. Boykin was also a member of Tressel’s final coaching staff at Youngstown State in 2000 before he took over at Ohio State.

Boykin was a member of Bowden’s coaching staff for eight years at Akron from 2012-18.

While the two biggest inspirations for his sideline attire are Tressel and Bowden, Boykin said the coaches of that era in general are typically what he models his style after.

“I’m an old-school guy,” Boykin said. “I grew up back when the (Dallas) Cowboys and all them and those guys wore the fedora hats and the ties and the sports coats and all that stuff. So that’s kind of something that I’ve always admired.”

The more formal attire gives off a sort of authoritative vibe, but also forces Boykin to remain calm on the sideline, he joked.

“It kind of shows that, ‘Hey, we’re in control,’ ” Boykin said. “It’s something that shows that, I guess, you’re calm, and maybe too it keeps you calm when you know you got to tie on. (Can’t) rip your headphones off and scream and yell. Maybe that helps me stay calm.”

Fans shouldn’t expect a full suit on the sideline from Boykin this season, though he joked he “can’t say never” to the idea. The tie and vest will be sticking around, Boykin said, though he admitted he may have to get creative when the temperature starts dropping later in the season.

Michael Sauls, (757) 803-5774, michael.sauls@virginiamedia.com

Norfolk State will get back its preseason All-MEAC quarterback this week, head coach Dawson Odums confirmed Monday.

Otto Kuhns has fully served a four-game suspension the NCAA handed him a week before the season started.

Odums said Kuhns will be available, but clarified that Jalen Daniels will remain the Spartans’ starting quarterback.

Kuhns’ return allows Norfolk State to open up the playbook should Daniels go down or there is a need for Kuhns to play as opposed to one of the other inexperienced backups, Odums said.

“Daniels will start,” Odums said. “But what it does allow us to do is that the guys that were behind Daniels for those first four games were inexperienced guys. So now we’re able to do a little bit more as we can open that playbook up and dive into it a little bit with some things that we know can give teams a problem.”

W&M 12th, 13th in national polls

William & Mary jumped a spot to No. 12 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll and remained No. 13 in the AFCA FCS Coaches Poll after a 28-21 victory at Wofford on Saturday.

The Tribe (2-1) piled up 428 total yards, including 243 on the ground, against Wofford. W&M held the Terriers to just seven points in the second half.

After Bronson Yoder ran for 142 yards and two touchdowns, the Tribe ranks 15th nationally with 196.7 rushing yards per game.

• A.C. Reynolds High (North Carolina) quarterback Ely Hamrick has become the University of Virginia’s first commitment for the 2026 class, according to 247sports.com. He played for Bradenton (Florida) IMG’s in-state team last season, passing for 1,244 yards with 19 touchdowns and no interceptions.

WOMEN’S COLLEGE SOCCER

Hampton rolls past Virginia State

Sanaa Perry scored two goals and Hampton concluded the non-conference portion of its schedule with a 7-1 rout of Virginia State on Monday in Ettrick.

Cristina Boluda Piqueras, Mattie Edozie and Patricia Wharton each scored their first goals of the season, while Nylah Jennings and Ellen Van Caenegem also found the back of the net for the Pirates (3-4-1).

Hampton outshot the Trojans (0-4) 22-3 and had five more corner kicks (9-4).

The Pirates will begin CAA play at noon Thursday against William & Mary at Powhatan Field in Norfolk.

W&M’s Lorenz picks up CAA honor

William & Mary goalie Jazzy Lorenz has been selected as the Coastal Athletic Association’s Rookie of the Week.

The Lone Tree, Colorado, native becomes the second Tribe player this month to earn the honor, following Peyton Costello on Sept. 2.

Lorenz made four key stops in the Tribe’s 1-0 road win against North Carolina State on Thursday night. It was her third clean sheet in the past four games.

• Christopher Newport’s Grace Shifflett and Amy Sidaway have been named the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively. It was the fifth time Sidaway has earned the defensive honor this season. Sidaway stopped all three shots she faced and picked up the shutout in the Captains’ 1-0 victory over No. 10 Emory on Saturday. Shifflett scored the lone goal in the final moments of the first half.

COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL

CNU’s Burk, James sweep C2C awards

Christopher Newport’s Macy Burk and Megan James have been named the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively.

Burk produced 29 kills with a .481 hitting percentage over the weekend. She is 5-2 with 16 saves for a 0.77 goals-against average. She added four aces in a sweep of No. 17 Calvin and 17 kills while hitting .517 in a five-set match against No. 10 MIT.

James was flawless in serve reception, successfully receiving 61 serves without an error across three matches. She finished the weekend with 37 digs while also contributing three aces and two blocks.

CNU (5-4) will visit Eastern in St. David’s, Pennsylvania, at 7 p.m. Friday.

Rahne wants his players to build confidence. He wants to further evaluate his players, especially the younger ones. And he wants his players, who have yet to win a game this season, to put in enough work while getting themselves healthy after a frustrating start.

The Monarchs (0-3) have Saturday off before heading to Bowling Green next week for their final non-conference game.

Close losses to South Carolina and East Carolina, followed by last week’s 37-17 home loss to Virginia Tech, have ODU reminding itself that there are still plenty of reasons to soldier on.

“We need to win games,” Rahne said Monday at his weekly news conference. “We’ve had the opportunity to win games, and we haven’t done it. And that is my job. But our season is very, very far from being over. We have a lot — a lot — of things to accomplish left in this year.”

The full Sun Belt Conference schedule, which begins Oct. 5 at Coastal Carolina, remains in front of the Monarchs. A league title is still firmly within reach.

Despite the losses, Rahne’s players believe the locker room is in fine shape.

“We’re all still working towards the same goal: winning the conference championship,” said safety Jahron Manning, who had a career-high 11 tackles against the Hokies. “I know a lot of people think about the 12-team playoff championship and everything like that. We’ve pretty much let that go out of our heads. So we’re mainly focused on Sun Belt and getting that goal accomplished.”

The Monarchs’ offense continues to be troubled at the line of scrimmage. After surrendering 62 sacks last season, they’ve given up an average of five per game this year.

This week is anything but a vacation.

“We need to grow,” running back Aaron Young said. “This is a big week for us. It’s huge. Day in and day out, we need to find a way to get better each day. Don’t let this week just slip away. Be in the moment every day and trust the process.”

Asked Monday about the sacks, Rahne gave a detailed breakdown of technical issues the team’s linemen have battled, most of them based on footwork and leverage at the point of attack.

After ODU rushed for 243 yards and passed for just 50 against Tech, Rahne gave a more general description of a blocker’s job.

“It’s a difficult thing,” he said. “Let’s just be honest. That’s why those guys get paid $30 million at the next level, right? Because it’s not an easy thing to do to go backward at a level and be able to react when you’re 300, 315 pounds, and you’re going against some of the greatest athletes in the world. But guess what: That’s what’s required, so we need to do it.”

ODU practiced Sunday night. Tuesday and Wednesday practices will follow, with sprinkles of a game plan for Bowling Green.

The players will lift weights and run on Thursday as their coaches scatter to recruit through the weekend.

Meanwhile, the players will work on what Rahne calls “eye discipline,” which involves not being fooled by motion, jukes or shifts.

Before Saturday’s game, the Monarchs had played in 14 one-score games in their previous 16 outings. It’s a phenomenon that can make a kicker feel especially valuable.

“I go to bed at night thinking, ‘How can I help this team?’ ” kicker Ethan Sanchez said. “Being a kicker, I’m not the biggest. I’m not the strongest. I’m low-key fast, though, and I do think I could help the team out with these one-score games.”

Kicker speed aside, Rahne had certain metrics going into the Tech game that weren’t met.

The Monarchs wanted to win the rushing yardage battle, which they didn’t. They didn’t want to give up extra yards on sacks or by failing to sustain blocks, which they did. And they wanted to get more turnovers than their opponent, which they didn’t.

The Hokies held ODU to zero yards of offense in a dismal third quarter that served as the game’s turning point.

It’s one of the reasons most of ODU’s players will stay on campus and work toward getting better this week despite the lack of a game.

“I think even the kids want it to be like an NFL bye week, where they see the guys going off to the Bahamas and everything,” Rahne said. “One, you don’t have a private plane. Two, you have class, and he doesn’t.”

David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com.

Now, 48 hours removed from the game, Odums is hoping he and his squad can learn from their mistakes and rebound against VMI this weekend.

“When you look at that film, we got to do simple, better,” Odums said during his weekly press conference Monday. “And really, that’s what it comes down to. We got to execute — and that’s all of us. It’s not just one area, one person, anything. I take full responsibility for that because we did not play like we had those first three games. We see what we did, we just got to look at it, identify, fix it and correct it for this next opponent in VMI, which is a very good football team.”

Saturday’s loss to Hampton was the Spartans’ worst since they lost by 41 in 2005. Odums made it sound like motivation to get back into the win column this weekend will certainly not be lacking.

“When you play like we played on Saturday, the motivation is to get to the next game,” he said. “The motivation is we let our home crowd down, we let our fans down. We didn’t play like we were capable of playing. That falls on me as the head coach, and I understand that, but we have to do a better job as a staff and we have to do a better job as a program and as a football team to make sure that when we come out that tunnel, we’re prepared to play.”

Injuries lead to poor offense

After a relatively good start to the season, Norfolk State’s offense faltered against Hampton. The Spartans put together a measly 21 total yards in the first half and just barely eclipsed the century mark for the game, finishing with 104.

Norfolk State was averaging 175.6 rushing yards per game before the loss to Hampton and eclipsed 200 in two of its first three games. Against the Pirates, Norfolk State running backs only averaged 1.9 yards per carry and compiled 58 yards on 30 carries.

On Monday, Odums attributed the lack of production on the ground to inconsistency in execution, but also to personnel due to injuries. Norfolk State was without two starters on the offensive line Saturday, most notably left tackle Samuel Eskridge.

“You go look at our Hampton game — we didn’t play like we played in FAMU and Virginia State,” he said. “It’s some missing pieces. There’s some missing pieces to that puzzle up front. The continuity when you got guys in and out, even when we put five out there throughout the game, guys are going in and out, so it’s hard to get that continuity. When you don’t have continuity, it’s hard to be consistent.”

The Spartans were also missing wide receivers Kam’ryn Thomas and Elyjah Mitchell. It’s still early in the week, so details on the recovery of the offensive line and wide receiver room remain minimal, but Odums is hopeful he’ll get some depth back for VMI.

Diagnosing the defense

Norfolk State’s defense started off great this season, but took a major step back against Hampton. The Spartans entered the game allowing 127.5 rushing yards, but the Pirates were able to rack up 135 in the first half alone and 227 for the game.

After watching film from Saturday’s loss, Odums and defensive lineman Marcus Mauney said the lack of success against the run was because if faltering gap integrity.

“You’ll see us play one out of the three downs the way we are capable of playing and then all of a sudden, we get creased,” Odums said. “That’s just us being more physical at the point of attack and just us having a good understanding on defense of what we’re doing. … A few times out there, guys didn’t get the call and it looked like a first game versus a fourth game. That’s what you can’t have, especially against your crosstown rivals.”

Mauney believes the Spartans will get back on track against VMI, a team that Odums is preaching is better than its 0-3 record.

“Everybody just has to be on the same page, same time, to make sure that everybody’s gapped out and gap-sound,” Mauney said. “That’s something that we’re definitely going to harp on a lot this upcoming week, and I think we’ll be fine. We’re still figuring it out, and we’re going to figure it out.”

Michael Sauls, (757) 803-5774, michael.sauls@viriginiamedia.com

ODU hands first loss to George Mason

Michael Eberle scored in the 84th minute off a Key White assist Sunday night, giving Old Dominion (4-2-1) a 1-0 home victory over George Mason (5-1).

The Monarchs outshot the Patriots 12-11 in ODU’s nonconference finale. ODU goalkeeper Michael Statham needed just one save for a shutout, while George Mason’s Jaume Salvado had three.

Ruhlman’s two goals propel CNU

Junior Zach Ruhlman spent two years as a reserve defender for Christopher Newport, but the Captains moved him to striker this year. Sunday, he scored both goals as CNU (4-0-2) extended its season-opening unbeaten streak to six games with a 2-0 home victory over Catholic (2-4).

Ruhlman scored his first college goal off a Jason LaViola assist in the 43rd minute, then netted his second off a pass from Yazan Yaghmmour in the 86th minute.

VWU plays scoreless tie

Virginia Wesleyan (5-1-1) and Rutgers-Camden (3-4-1) played to a scoreless draw in Virginia Beach.

The Marlins outshot the visitors 23-5, and VWU goalkeeper Ben Haynes made three saves. Rutgers-Camden keeper Sean Boen had six saves.

COLLEGE WOMEN’S SOCCER

Wake Forest knocks off No. 2 Virginia

Unranked Wake Forest (6-2-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) went to Charlottesville, dominated the first half and upended No. 2 Virginia 3-0.

The Cavaliers (8-1, 1-1) gave up goals to Caiya Hanks in the 17th and 37th minutes, as well as Sierra Sythe’s in the 35th. In a 20-minute span, UVA surrendered the most goals it had in any match since a 3-3 draw at Virginia Tech on Oct. 13, 2022.

Hokies blank Syracuse

Virginia Tech (7-2-1) handled Syracuse 1-0 in Blacksburg, making the Hokies 2-0 in ACC play for the first time since 2009. The Orange fell to 6-3-1, 0-2.

Allie George scored late in the first half for the Hokies, and Lauren Hargrove recorded a season-high seven saves.

COLLEGE WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

Hampton falls to Iona

Hampton (0-9) lost 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 27-25) to Iona at the Henson Hawk Invitational in Princess Anne, Maryland.

Madison Clark had nine kills, seven digs and three blocks for HU, and Morgan Warren had 21 assists.

COLLEGE FIELD HOCKEY

No. 8 Ohio State turns back No. 18 ODU

No. 8 Ohio State (6-0) captured a 2-1 victory over No. 18 Old Dominion (4-2) before 300 at L.R. Hill Sports Complex in Norfolk.

The Buckeyes went ahead in the 45th minute on Lindsey Roberts’ goal and doubled their lead on Makenna Webster’s goal in the 53rd. Frederique Zandbergen scored in the 57th minute — with 3:19 left — for the Monarchs, who were outshot 12-5.

JMU shuts out W&M

James Madison (3-1) defeated William & Mary 4-0 in Harrisonburg, scoring in each quarter.

Madelief Molier provided the second-quarter goal, assisted by former Poquoson High star Skyler Brown. The Tribe fell to 0-6 despite Maddie George’s eight saves. JMU outshot W&M 21-4.

No. 3 UVA earns OT victory

No. 3 Virginia (5-0) won 3-2 against American (2-4) in College Park, Maryland, on Dani Mendez-Trendler’s goal 7:24 into overtime.
Mia Abello scored in the second quarter and Emma Watchilla in the fourth quarter for the Cavaliers.

COLLEGE WOMEN’S TENNIS

Tribe takes four invitational bracket titles

William & Mary closed its season-opening Tribe Invitational by winning three of the four singles draws, as well as taking a doubles draw.

Senior Hedda Gurholt (Gold bracket), sophomore Francesca Davis (Green) and freshman Mira Kernagis (Black) each won their singles draws over the two-day event. In doubles, senior Emma Fernald and sophomore Emma Pell won the Griffin draw.

Commanders activate former Catholic, NSU DB

Defensive back Bobby Price, a former Catholic High and Norfolk State standout, was elevated from the Washington Commanders’ practice squad to the active roster for Sunday afternoon’s home game against the New York Giants.

Price, 26, has played in 28 previous NFL regular-season contests, 22 of them with the Detroit Lions from 2020-22 and six last year with the Arizona Cardinals. He has defended three passes, recovered a fumble and made 27 tackles.

COLLEGE WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

ODU extends streak to five

Old Dominion (8-2) extended its winning streak to five matches with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 26-24) triumph over Navy (0-9). The Monarchs went 3-0 at George Mason’s invitatioonal.

Myah Conway had 12 kills and Elisa Maggi had 10 kills and eight digs for ODU. Tshilanda Diouf had nine kills and four blocks.

Davidson beat William & Mary 3-1 (25-14, 25-22, 19-25, 25-22) at the Queens Fall Classic, leaving the Tribe with a 4-5 record for the season in W&M’s final non-Coastal Athletic Association match of the year.

The Tribe’s Maddie Meyers had nine kills and eight digs. Bella Easton had 18 assists and seven digs. Emma Slusser had 15 kills and three blocks for the Wildcats (4-4).

Liberty Torres had 19 kills as Cleveland State (7-2) defeated Norfolk State 3-1 (25-15, 25-20, 22-25, 25-21) at Virginia Tech’s Hokie Invitational.

Gabrielle Gilbert had 15 kills, Sydney McCree had 32 assists and Lily Rose-Pichon made 19 digs for the Spartans (2-6).

Hampton (0-8) lost 3-0 (25-15, 25-22, 25-14) to UNC Asheville at Maryland Eastern Shore’s Henson Hawk Invitational despite Madison Clark’s 10 kills and Morgan Warren’s 20 assists and 10 digs for the Pirates.

CNU knocks off two foes, including No. 17

Christopher Newport enjoyed one of its best days of the season Friday, defeating Tufts 3-1 (25-21, 25-16, 25-27, 25-15) and Calvin, the nation’s No. 17 Division III team, 3-0 (25-19, 25-9, 25-22) at a tournament in Boston.

Megan James had 13 kills, 13 digs and two blocks, while Alyssa Dozier had 10 kills and eight blocks. Against Calvin, Alyssa Vitale had 30 assists and 15 digs. Dozier had 10 kills, Samantha Dorn nine kills and James eight kills.

CNU (5-4) fell Saturday, however, to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The No. 10 Engineers (8-0) won 3-2 (25-17, 21-25, 17-25, 27-25, 15-12). Macy Burk had 17 kills and eight blocks for CNU, Noelle Starr had 18 digs and Vitale had 40 assists and 11 digs.

Marlins go 2-1 in Pennsylvania tourney

Virginia Wesleyan went 2-1 in the Franklin and Marshall Quad in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

The Marlins’ season-opening winning streak ended at seven matches as F&M rallied past the Marlins 3-2 (20-25, 23-25, 25-22, 25-16, 15-6) Friday.

Hannah Smith led the Marlins with 13 kills and 13 digs, while Madi Schmidt had 10 kills and 13 digs, and Salena Jones dished out 23 assists. Liah Perez had 28 assists, four aces and 17 digs for the Diplomats.

But VWU (9-1) came back Saturday in Lancaster for two wins. First, they posted a 3-1 (21-25, 25-12, 25-15, 25-23) victory over Montclair State (6-2). Smith had 13 kills, Jones had 29 assists and Madeleine Hanes had 19 assists.

The Marlins then defeated Clarkson 3-0 (25-22, 25-18, 25-20) as Smith had 16 kills and 10 digs, Jones had 16 assists and Hanes and Madi Schmidt had 17 assists apiece.

Regent wins twice in S.C.

Regent (3-4) won a pair of matches at the Bob Jones Invitational in Greenville, South Carolina, defeating Clinton 3-1 (25-16, 18-25, 25-19, 25-21) and Boyce 3-1.

Against Clinton, Erin Saunders had 16 kills, 13 digs and five aces, and Shaley Wertz had 22 assists and nine digs.

COLLEGE MEN’S SOCCER

CNU stays unbeaten

Christopher Newport (3-0-2) stayed unbeaten with a 2-0 home triumph over Rutgers-Camden (3-3). Jason LaViola scored in the 34th minute and Drew McWhinney in the 52nd for the Captains, who held an 18-7 advantage in shots.

Va. Wesleyan shuts out Catholic

Virginia Wesleyan (5-1) took control early and shut out Catholic 2-0 at Foster Field. The Cardinals, from Washington, D.C., fell to 2-3.
Zach Bittler scored in the 13th minute off a JaMarhe Wills assist, and Alex Moody converted a penalty kick in the 17th.

COLLEGE WOMEN’S SOCCER

No. 9 CNU edges No. 10 Emory

Grace Shifflett’s goal just 11 seconds before halftime gave No. 9 Christopher Newport (4-0-1) a 1-0 victory over No. 10 Emory (3-1) in a Division III showdown in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Amy Sidaway made three saves for the Captains.

COLLEGE FIELD HOCKEY

No. 6 CNU turns back Messiah

Goals by Delaney Norr and Katie Abendschoen gave No. 6 CNU (4-0) a two-goal lead, and the Captains held on for a 2-1 victory over Messiah (1-3) of Pennsylvania in Fredericksburg.

Abendschoen’s rebound goal with 6:36 remaining gave CNU a cushion to withstand Teagan Murrie’s penalty stroke for Messiah with 44 seconds remaining.

Ruffin’s two goals guide VWU

Mary Ruffin scored twice as Virginia Wesleyan (3-1) won 4-1 at Gwynedd Mercy (2-4) in Pennsylvania. Landry Meyer’s goal in the 39th minute broke a 1-1 tie, and Ruffin and Katherine Druiett scored in the next nine minutes.

COLLEGE WOMEN’S TENNIS

Tribe puts six players in finals

William & Mary enjoyed a strong opening day of the 29th annual Tribe Invitational. W&M combined to go 12-3 in singles, advancing six players to the finals of their respective flights, and 2-0 in doubles.

It will be an all-W&M final in both the Gold and Green singles draws. Seniors Alessandra Anghel (Gold) and Ine Stange (Green), sophomores Francesca Davis (Green) and Emma Pell (White) and freshman Mira Kernagis (Black) each went 2-0 in singles Saturday to advance to the final in their singles draws. Senior Hedda Gurholt also advanced to the Gold Singles final after receiving an opening-round bye and winning her semifinal.

The Cavaliers dominated the early portion of the game but squandered their advantage by turning the ball over four times. UVA’s defense kept the game close into the fourth quarter but was ultimately worn down by Maryland.

After the Cavaliers went three-and-out on the opening possession of the second half, Edwards hit Kaden Prather in the corner of the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown that made it 14-13 with 10:55 to go in the third quarter, and Maryland (2-1) led the rest of the way.

Felton entered the game as the leading receiver in the FBS, and he’ll be back at or near the top of the charts Sunday. Edwards steadied himself after an uneven first half and found Felton on some of the game’s biggest momentum-generating plays.

Maryland coach Mike Locksley didn’t waver as Edwards struggled, leaving him in the game and getting rewarded for that decision with a touchdown drive to end the first half that sparked the Terps (2-1).

Virginia (2-1) entered the red zone four times in the first half but had just 13 points to show for it, and the Cavaliers would come to regret not capitalizing.

One was a tough-luck turnover, when quarterback Anthony Colandrea had the ball kicked out of his hand by an offensive lineman who was lying on the ground, facing the other direction.

Colandrea was intercepted in the second half before a fumble by receiver Malachi Fields was recovered by Maryland’s Quashon Fuller.

By then, Maryland had used a significant time-of-possession edge to start imposing its will on Virginia, and a fourth-and-1 conversion in the red zone led to a touchdown that sealed the victory.

Virginia went 3 for 15 on third downs, continuing a trend that has been building throughout the early portion of the season. The Cavaliers are now 9 of 40 this season on third down.

The takeaway

Maryland: After squandering a late lead to Michigan State, the Terps got right, and doing so against a historic rival doesn’t hurt. Maryland has now won 14 consecutive nonconference games. Only Georgia (24) has a longer streak.

Virginia: Everything that went right in the first two weeks went wrong Saturday. Turnover issues are the headliner, but the Cavaliers lost their edge as the game went on and were unable to capitalize on early opportunities.

Up next

Maryland: Hosts Villanova on Saturday at noon.

Virginia: Visits Coastal Carolina on Saturday at 2 p.m.

In fact, the Monarchs had few answers for Virginia Tech at all.

Kyron Drones passed for 176 yards, rushed for another 117 and accounted for two touchdowns to lead Tech to a thoroughly dominant 37-17 win over the Monarchs at a packed S.B. Ballard Stadium.

The loss left ODU (0-3) winless this season while giving the Hokies (2-1) a 4-2 lead in the all-time series.

Bhayshul Tuten added 115 rushing yards and a pair of scores for Virginia Tech, which held a whopping 465-293 advantage in total offensive yards.

The Monarchs punted eight times, committed seven penalties for 74 yards, mustered just 50 passing yards from two backup quarterbacks and converted 1 of 12 on third down.

After leading 14-10 at halftime, the Hokies blew the game open.

“We didn’t play well enough in the third quarter to give ourselves a chance to win that football game,” ODU coach Ricky Rahne said. “I felt like we were ready and poised to play well in that quarter, and we didn’t. So that’s obviously on me.”

The Monarchs had played in 14 one-score games over their past 16, something Rahne attributed this week to his team’s competitiveness against a tough schedule.

Saturday’s portion of it proved too tough, especially shorthanded.

Already without injured All-American linebacker Jason Henderson for a second straight week, the Monarchs turned to their backup quarterbacks after incumbent starter Grant Wilson suffered an apparent left (non-throwing) wrist injury on the final play of the previous week’s 20-14 loss to East Carolina.

Joseph, a redshirt freshman, started and didn’t last the first quarter after Rahne decided to make a change. Henicle, a true freshman, completed 5 of 12 passes for 38 yards.

Neither player had experienced a single college snap.

The Monarchs were outgained 114-0 in the third quarter as Tech kicked a pair of field goals.

“Give credit to them,” said ODU running back Aaron Young, who had 67 of his team’s 243 rushing yards. “They played really hard. They have some talented players, some great coaches. We’ve just got to execute.”

Asked about the dismal performance on third down, Rahne pointed out that poor outcomes on previous downs likely exacerbated the problem.

Indeed, the Monarchs found themselves facing at least third-and-7 on nine occasions.

“We did not play well enough on those (previous) downs,” Rahne said, “which put us in too many third-and-longs, which obviously is going to put you behind the sticks — especially against a team that has very good pass rushers and very good corners.”

By the time Tariq Sims scored on a 16-yard run to pull the Monarchs to within the final margin with just more than three minutes to go, few people in the announced crowd of 22,208 were still around to see it.

The Hokies pretty much put it away when Tuten scored on a 22-yard run to put his team ahead 34-10 with 10:10 to go, turning many of the spectators into traffic-beaters.

Tuten’s 16-yard touchdown burst through ODU’s interior gave Tech a 27-10 lead five seconds into the fourth quarter.

John Love’s 32-yard field goal gave Tech a 20-10 lead midway through the third quarter. The kick came after the Hokies recovered an ODU fumble on the Monarchs’ 18.

Virginia Tech stretched its lead to 17-10 on Love’s 21-yard field goal with 10:53 remaining in the third quarter.

The Monarchs closed the gap to 14-10 on Ethan Sanchez’s 28-yard field goal with 5:14 left in the first half. The score was set up by Tech transfer Bryce Duke’s career-long 48-yard run against his former team.

Leading 14-7, the Hokies had a 33-yard field-goal try tipped wide left midway through the second quarter.

Henicle went 65 yards untouched around the right side to pull the Monarchs to within 14-7 with 13:13 left in  the second quarter.

Tech took a 14-0 lead on Drones’ 1-yard touchdown plunge on fourth-and-goal with 5:50 left in the first quarter.

The score followed a 48-yard pass from Drones to Jaylin Lane in which Drones fumbled the shotgun snap and recovered deftly.

The Hokies drew first blood when Drones found a wide-open Lane for a 25-yard touchdown pass on the game’s opening possession, giving Tech a 7-0 lead less than three minutes in.

Lane finished with 106 yards and a touchdown on seven catches.

ODU’s players lamented that another one slipped away.

“All credit to them,” said linebacker Koa Naotala. “But just fix a few mistakes, and you don’t know what would’ve happened.”

The Monarchs have a bye week before traveling to Bowling Green.

David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com.