The William & Mary field hockey team was leading CAA-rival Hofstra late in the second half Friday night at Busch Field, but playing 9-v-11 for the last seven minutes took its toll as the Green and Gold fell, 3-2.  The Tribe moves to 6-12 overall and 1-5 in the Colonial Athletic Association, while the Pride improved to 14-4 on the year and 4-1 in the league.

The Tribe used a stout and spectacular defensive effort against one of the top offensive teams in the nation, holding Hofstra to just three goals off 16 shots.  The Pride struck first in the 11th minute, off a penalty corner, but W&M equalized just before half with a goal in the 29th.  Again on a corner, senior Peyton Smith (Richmond, Va.) ripped a shot to the far side and sophomore Emma MacLeod (Richmond, Va.) tipped the ball up and around the diving goalkeeper.  It was MacLeod's sixth goal of the year, and the fourth helper for Smith

In the 60th minute, the Green and Gold took the lead on its only corner of the half.  This time it was Booter Ellis (Delmar, Del.) who took the first crack on the near side, and senior Pippin Saunders (Mittagong, NSW) got on the end of it and deflected it into goal.  For Saunders, it was her team-leading 12th goal of the season, and Ellis' third assist.  From there, the visitors pulled their goalie for a minute while W&M was hit with two costly yellow cards, giving Hofstra a temporary three-player advantage on the attack.  That allowed the Pride to break through with two goals in the 66th minute, and escape with a 3-2 win.

That defensive pressure for W&M including three defensive saves, the most in a game since the 2005 season.  Ellis had her team-leading fifth save of the season, and senior Maddy Moore (Norfolk, Va.) had two, one in each half.  Senior Meredith Savage (Virginia Beach, Va.) also had five more stops in goal.

William & Mary is back in action on Sunday afternoon, hosting Georgetown at 1 p.m.  Before the game, the Tribe will honor its five seniors.  The match will also be broadcast live on TribeAthletics.TV, a first for Busch Field, with Wesley Kempton and Peel Hawthorne '80 on the call.