WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The William & Mary women's soccer team continues its five-game homestand as they open Colonial Athletic Association play with a pair of matches this weekend at Martin Family Stadium at Albert-Daly Field. The Tribe welcomes James Madison on Friday, Sept. 24, before hosting Towson on Sunday, Sept. 25. Kickoffs are set for 7 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.
TribeAthletics.com caught up with head coach
John Daly to discuss the last weekend's match, the start of CAA play, and the upcoming matches with James Madison, and Towson. The video preview is available through the above link or by clicking
here.
Scouting the Tribe
William & Mary (6-3-0) looks to move its winning streak to two games after a 1-1 weekend. The Tribe continues a five-game homestand as they open CAA play with James Madison (9/23) and Towson (9/25). Redshirt freshman
Sarah Segan leads the Tribe offense with six goals, one assist, and 13 points.
Rachel Moore is second on the team with four goals, two assists, and 10 points. Nine players have already recorded at least one point this season for the Tribe. Redshirt junior
Grace Smith started the first eight matches, before freshman
Katelyn Briguglio started the non-conference finale. Smith has a 1.11 goals-against-average, 40 saves, and four shutouts. Briguglio has a 1.00 goals-against-average and made two saves in her first start.
Scouting the Dukes
James Madison enters league action with a 3-6-0 mark, but are coming off of a win. The Dukes defeated VCU 3-2 in double overtime last Friday night in Harrisonburg. CAA Preseason Player of the Year Ashley Herndon leads the Dukes with five goals, four assists, and 14 points. Haley Crawford is second on the team with two goals, four assists, and eight points. Three players have split time in goal this season for JMU. Olivia Miller has started six matches, Maggie Buxton has started three, and Hannah McShea has appeared in three matches. Miller owns a 2.61 goals-against-average and 24 saves. Buxton has posted a 2.00 goals-against-average and seven saves, while McShea has a 1.82 goals-against-average and six save. All three of them have posted a victory. JMU head coach Dave Lomardo became the seventh Division I head coach and 14th overall to win his 400th career match with the Dukes win over VCU last Friday.
Scouting the Tigers
Towson enters conference play with a 3-6-1 record overall, but are coming in off of a win. The Tigers, which open CAA play at Elon on Friday night, defeated George Washington 2-0 in their non-conference final last Sunday. Natalia Pinkney leads the Tigers with three goals and six points. Elizabeth Coletti is just off of the pace with two goals and four points. Taylor Sebolao has started nine of Towson's 10 matches in goal, while Emma Burnett has appeared in two matches with a start. Sebolao owns a 1.61 goals-against-average, with 38 saves, and three shutouts. Burnett has posted a 4.00 goals-against-average and seven saves.
Series History vs. James Madison
Friday's meeting with James Madison will be the 38th meeting between the two schools. W&M leads the all-time series 20-13-4, but JMU won the last meeting, 3-2, in the CAA Championship after the teams tied 1-1 in the regular season.
Barbara Platenberg scored in the regular season, while
Mackenzie Kober and
Rachel Moore added markers in the CAA Championship match.
Series History vs. Towson
W&M meets Towson for the 15th time in program history on Sunday afternoon in Williamsburg. The Tribe leads the all-time series 11-1-2, including a 3-2 victory last season. Sophomore
Mackenzie Kober as well as juniors
Sami Grasso and
Rachel Moore netted goals in the match against Towson last season.
The Road Ahead
The Tribe concludes its season-long five-match homestand with just one match next weekend. W&M hosts Elon on Sunday, Oct. 2, with kickoff scheduled for 2 p.m.
400 Club
Head coach
John Daly, who is in his 30th season as the Tribe's head coach, became the sixth Division I coach and 13th NCAA coach to win his 400th career match with a 2-0 win at UNC Greensboro on Sunday, Sept. 11. W&M joins UCONN as the only other school that has had a 400-win coach in both their women's and men's programs. Former men coach
Al Albert won 401 matches in his 33-year career with the Green and Gold. Daly will be honored for his accomplishments prior to Thursday night's match and at the third quarter break of the football game on Saturday night.
Weekly Awards
For the first time this season a pair of Tribe women's soccer players were honored with CAA weekly awards, as the College swept the awards. Redshirt junior
Grace Smith and redshirt freshman
Sarah Segan earned the player of the week and rookie of the week awards, respectively. Smith made 13 saves in a pair of shutouts last week, while Segan scored the game-winning goal in the match at VCU.
Too Close for Comfort
All but two of the Tribe's nine matches this season have been decided by a goal. The Tribe is 4-3 in those matches with wins over DePaul (2-1), Old Dominion (1-0 OT), VCU (1-0), Marshall (2-1) and setbacks to Maryland (3-2), Virginia Tech (2-1), and High Point (3-2 OT). In the two matches that the were decided by multiple goals the Green and Gold is 2-0.
Golden Goal
Sophomore
Mackenzie Kober registered her first career golden goal in the 94th minute, lifting W&M to a 1-0 win over Hampton Roads rival Old Dominion. The Tribe is 1-1 so far this season in overtime matches.
First Half Furry
The Tribe has scored 11 of their 16 goals in the first half of matches this season. W&M has taken the lead first in all, but one of its matches this season.
Segan Striking Early
Freshman
Sarah Segan has gotten on the scoresheet six times this season, and four of the six goals have come in the first half. Segan registered a goal in the 10th minute against East Carolina, in the second against Maryland, the 27-minute against VCU, and the sixth against Marshall.
Pole Position
W&M was selected to win the CAA title by a vote of the league's 10 head coaches in the preseason poll. The Green and Gold, which won a share of last year's regular season crown and advanced to the CAA Championship match, received six of the possible nine first place votes and 76 points in the preseason poll. Defending CAA champion James Madison was picked just behind the Tribe with 73 points, while Hofstra was selected third with 69 points.
Connect Four
The Tribe had four players selected to the Preseason All-CAA teams. Senior
Clara Logsdon and junior
Rachel Moore each earned a spot on the All-CAA team, while juniors
Elysse Branton and
Sami Grasso picked up honorable mention honors.
Setting the Slate
W&M officially opened its 18-game schedule last week on the road at East Carolina, however, the Tribe will play 10 home games at Albert-Daly Field at Martin Family Stadium this fall. The home schedule includes a season-long five-game homestand from Sept. 15 to Oct. 2, which features High Point, Marshall, James Madison, Towson, and Elon. The 10 home games are the most since the 2010 season.
Familiar Faces
W&M returns six starters and 18 players from last year's team that went to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. It was the 25th time in 35 seasons that the Tribe qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Instant Impact
The Tribe welcomes seven true freshmen, and a redshirt freshman to the roster for the 2016 campaign. Freshmen have had an instant impact with the Tribe, as W&M as had at least one All-Rookie team selection since the award's inception in 2004. Current Tribe players, senior
Clara Logsdon, juniors
Elysse Branton and
Rachel Moore, and sophomore
Mackenzie Kober were CAA All-Rookie selections earlier in their career.
Coming Home
Former All-CAA player
Emory Camper returns to the Tribe as she begins her coaching career with the Green and Gold. She finished her W&M playing career with 31 goals, 12 assists, and 72 points.
