WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – A pair of first half goals lifted the William & Mary women's soccer team to a 2-1 victory over DePaul on Sunday afternoon at Martin Family Stadium at Albert-Daly Field. Senior Haley Kavanaugh and junior Rachel Moore tallied goals in the win for W&M. With the victory, W&M improves to 2-1, while the Blue Demons fall to 0-2-1.
 
After a slow start to the match, W&M jumped on the board with a goal in the 12th minute. Junior Elysse Branton won a battle for the ball from a DePaul defender and the goalkeeper and sent a pass to the right. Kavanaugh collected the feed and fired into the middle of the empty net. Her first marker of the season gave W&M a 1-0 lead, and it was the third straight game that the Tribe scored first.  
 
Just a minute later, the Tribe missed a chance to go up by a pair of goals. Junior Haley Kent drove the box from the left side and uncorked a shot that had to be saved by DePaul's Lauren Frasca.
 
The Blue Demons tied the match with a goal in the 18th minute. From just over 25 yards out, Abby Reed sent a short feed to her teammate Taylor Schissler. Schissler took a touch from the right side and rocketed a shot that hit the left post and deflected into the goal.
 
W&M responded with the game-winner in the 27th minute. Sophomore Claire Robbins worked the ball down the right side of the pitch, before she sent a cross into the box that bounced freely for a moment. Finally, Moore was able to get to it and direct into the net. Her second goal of the season, gave W&M a 2-1 advantage.
 
Again the Tribe just missed going up by two goals in the 39th minute. Off of a corner kick from Kent, Kavanaugh was able to back heel a shot that had to be cleared off of the goalline by a Blue Demon defender.
 
DePaul had a number of opportunities throughout the second half, but the Tribe defense held its ground. In the 60th minute, Reed turned a shot on goal that had to be saved by redshirt junior Grace Smith. The most dangerous ball came in the 65th minute when Reed's shot beat Smith, but Robbins was able to clear it off of the goalline for the team save.
 
The Blue Demons had one final chance in the waning seconds of the contest. Schissler charged the box and fired, but Smith was there for the save with just five seconds left.
 
DePaul outshot W&M 9-7, which included a 7-4 advantage on shots on-goal, in the contest. Smith came up with a career-high tying five saves on the evening. Moore led the Tribe with three shots in the contest.
 
The Green and Gold returns to action with a pair of matches against in-state rivals next week. W&M travels to Old Dominion for a match on Thursday, Sept. 1, before hosting nationally ranked Virginia Tech on Sunday, Sept. 4. Kickoffs are set for 7 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.