WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The William & Mary women's soccer team hits the road for its longest non-conference road trip with a pair matches outside of Williamsburg this weekend. The Green and Gold heads to VCU on Thursday, Sept. 8, before travel to UNC Greensboro on Sunday, Sept. 11. Kickfoffs are set for 7 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.
TribeAthletics.com caught up with head coach
John Daly to discuss the results last weekend, coaching against a former player, and the upcoming matches with VCU and UNCG. The video preview is available through the above link or by clicking
here.
Scouting the Tribe
William & Mary (3-2-0) looks to get back in the win column after dropping a 2-1 decision to No. 16 Virginia Tech. The Tribe hits the road for its longest road trip to date with matches at VCU (9/8) and UNC Greensboro (9/11). Junior
Rachel Moore leads the Tribe offense with three goals, one assist, and seven points. Redshirt freshman
Sarah Segan is just off of the pace with two goals, one assist, and five points. Nine players have already recorded at least one point this season for the Tribe. Redshirt junior
Grace Smith has played every minute in goal this season. She has a 1.19 goals-against-average, 21 saves, and two shutouts.
Scouting the Rams
VCU (2-2-1) looks to move its unbeaten streak to four games as they open weekend, hosting the Tribe. The Rams tied Sacred Heart (0-0), before defeating Holy Cross (4-1) in the VCU Invitational last weekend. Megan Dell and Amanda Hallesjo lead the Rams with one goal, one assist, and three points. Seven different players have scored VCU's seven goals this year. Audrey Sanderson and Ryan Jones have both seen action and started for the Black and Gold in goal this season. Sanderson has posted four starts with a 0.79 goals-against-average, 16 saves, and a shutout. Jones has made two appearances with a start, posting 1.33 goals-against-average and six saves. The Rams are coached by Lindsey Vanderspiegel Martin, who was a standout for W&M and was inducted to the W&M Hall of Fame last spring.
Scouting the Spartans
UNC Greensboro (3-2-1) looks to get back into the win column after dropping their second match of the season. The Spartans open the weekend with a home match against Liberty on Thursday. Caylin Prillaman and Melanie Spensiero lead the Spartans with three goals and six points apiece. Diarra Simmons is third on the team with a goal, an assist, and three points. Chloe Buehler has started all six matches in goal for UNCG, while Jamie Phelps has appeared in one match in relief. Buehler owns a 1.50 goals-against-average with 34 saves, and three shutouts.
Series History vs. VCU
W&M travels to VCU on Thursday night for the 26th meeting between the two former CAA rivals. The Tribe leads the all-time series with an 18-5-2 mark, but the last regular season meeting came in 2012. The Rams picked up a 2-1 victory in Williamsburg in the last meeting. The two schools played to a scoreless draw in an exhibition last season.
Series History vs. UNC Greensboro
The College meets UNC Greensboro for the seventh time in program history in Greensboro on Sunday afternoon. The series is deadlocked at 3-3. The two schools haven't played since 2007 and on that day the Spartans picked up a 2-0 victory over the Tribe.
The Road Ahead
The Tribe opens a season-long five match homestand next weekend as they close out non-conference play. W&M welcomes High Point on Thursday, Sept. 15, before playing host to Marshall on Sunday, Sept. 18. Kickoffs are set for 7 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.
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 1-0 so far this season in overtime matches.
First Half Furry
The Tribe has scored seven of their nine goals in the first half of matches this season. Last weekend, W&M scored in overtime and in the second half for the first time this season. The Green and Gold has taken the lead first in four of the five matches this season.
Segan Striking Early
Freshman
Sarah Segan has gotten on the scoresheet twice this season, and both of her markers have been early in the match. Against East Carolina she scored in the 10th minute, before she tallied in the second minute against Maryland.
Closing in on an Impressive Milestone
Head coach
John Daly, who is entering his 30th season as the Tribe's head coach, is closing in on his 400th career victory. He is just four wins away from the mark, and enters the season with a career record of 398-160-53, which a .695 winning percentage.
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.
