BLACKSBURG, Va. - The Hokies remained strong in the second half to hold off the Davidson Wildcats in their final non-conference before ACC play begins. Tech (6-2-0) got out to a comfortable lead in the first half before Davidson (3-6-0) attempted a comeback, late in the second half. The Hokies were led by freshman Kelly Conheeney, who scored two goals, while Davidson ‘s bench rallied for both Wildcat scores.

Senior forward Julian Johnson put Tech on the board first, in the seventh minute, when she scored her first goal of the season off a signature throw-in. Johnson was out of bounds near the 18 on the right side of the field and tossed the ball in to her teammates, scrambling in the box. Emily Jukich took a shot at the incoming ball as it was about to hit the ground, but missed, which allowed the ball to bounce off the ground and past the keeper into the goal.

Midfielder Conheeney would later make the match 2-0 as she netted an unassisted goal in the 37^th minute. Conheeney’s first shot was block by Davidson’s keeper Jessie Baxa, but she was able to get a hold of her loose rebound and stick it in the upper right corner of the net just over the recovering keeper.

Tech’s defense held their ground in the first half, keeping the ball away from their goal and allowing the Wildcats just one shot in the first 45 minutes.

Conheeney struck again, early in the second half, as she received the ball from Jukich, on her left, and chested it down for control, then putting it over Baxa for the score. This was the first two-goal game of the season for Conheeney, her second multi-point game on the year, and the first assist of the season for Jukich.

Davidson would finally break the Hokies’ back line and have its try at the net, connecting for the first time in the 71^st minute. Senior Suzanne Sittko broke things open for the Wildcats as she received a pass from Kyri Bye-Nagel in the middle, and hit the bottom left corner of the net from the right side of the field.

The Wildcats made it a game in the 78^th minute a freshman Rachel Newmister caught Tech’s keeper out too far and put the ball just over her head off a pass from Sittko.

The Hokies held on, allowing Davidson just one more shot in the game.

Sophomore Kristin Carden made her 2009 debut in goal for the Hokies. Carden faced six shots in the game, and tallied four saves. Baxa faced 19 Hokie shots and made five saves on the night.

The Hokies will return to Thompson Field for the final game of their four-game home stand and their first ACC match of the year as they take on Clemson, Thursday, Sept. 24, at 7 p.m.