WILLIAMSBURG - The William and Mary field hockey fell at home Sunday afternoon to Radford, 6-1 on a blazing hot afternoon. The Tribe is now 1-3 on the year, while the Highlanders improved to 4-0 this season.

Box Score

Defense ruled the first half in the game, with neither side able to crack the lid on the goal until the 26th minute. On a corner opportunity, one of four in the half for the Tribe, senior Erica Eng (Morristown, N.J.) took the pass at the top of the circle and curled down the backside of the defense before ripping in a shot to the opposite corner from 10 yards out. It was the ninth goal of the senior's career, and second of the weekend.

The Highlanders would respond five minutes later, however, after a W&M defender was whistled for a penalty in the box, and Radford's Ellie Staples converted the ensuing penalty stroke. The visitors scored again just before the half on a pass to the back side of the defense, and went into the break holding a 2-1 advantage. Despite being down, William and Mary had more penalty corner opportunities in the first 35 minutes, 4-2, and had six shots to Radford's eight.

Coming out of the break, Radford used some precision passing and not a small amount of luck to pile on the goals, scoring four more in the first 15 minutes of the second half. Goalkeeper Camilla Hill (Williamsburg, Va.) made terrific plays on two of the goals to get a piece of the ball, but bad luck saw the shots slide just inside the goalposts. The William and Mary offense was able to respond, generating multiple breakaway opportunities, but Radford's Jennifer Wisniewski was able to turn away all attempts until her defense was able to get back and clear the ball.

The Tribe's defensive effort really stepped up over the final 20 minutes, stiffened by the terrific play of several reserves and freshmen. Sophomore goalkeeper Elizabeth Frey (Virginia Beach, Va.) came on in the 50th minute in relief of Hill, and made the first six stops of her career while stonewalling the Radford offense. At the same time, the Tribe back line was sparked by freshmen Mia Cherry (Yorktown, Va.) and Giovanna Golen (Charlotte, N.C.), and began pushing the line of control steadily up the field over the 10 minutes.

William and Mary continues its homestand next weekend, hosting two teams and a neutral-site match as well. The Tribe will face Davidson Friday, Sept. 10th, at 4 p.m., before taking on Pennsylvania Saturday at 3 p.m. The Wildcats and the Quakers will then square off Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.