The No. 19-ranked William & Mary field hockey team picked up another signature win on Sunday, beating Old Dominion on the road, 3-2, for its sixth win in a row.  The Tribe improved to 11-4 with the win, while the Lady Monarchs fell to 6-8 on the year.

The win was notable for a number of reasons, including that it was the Tribe's first win in Norfolk since the 1977 season.  It ws also W&M's first win at all in the series against the nine-time national champions since 2004, and the Tribe's three goals join the 2009 and 1980 teams as the most recent to score at least three against ODU.  William & Mary is also the first team this season since Penn State in the very first game of the year to beat Old Dominion on their home turf.

While play early in the game flowed between the circles, neither team was able to generate a dangerous chance until late in the 11th minute when W&M was able to draw a corner.  Sophomore Annie Snead (Midlothian, Va.) started the play with the insert, and then finished it crossing across the middle to tip a shot from Booter Ellis (Delmar, Del.) up and past the goalkeeper to stake the Tribe to a 1-0 lead.  Less than four minutes later, W&M made it 2-0 off another corner opportunity.  This time, it was Cassidy Goodwin (Gloucester, Va.) and Estelle Hughes (Newcastle, NSW) with the insert and the stop, teeing up freshman Melanie Strik (Den Haag, The Netherlands) for a low hard shot that blew by the defense.  That's how it would stay as the halftime horn sounded, thanks to a strong effort by the Tribe defense with two blocks high in the circle after ODU drew a corner in the final 30 seconds.

The second half started almost exactly the opposite way, with the Lady Monarchs controlling the pace and flow of play, and drawing corners.  Early in the 38th minute, they were able to capitalize on a Danielle Grega shot out of a corner to cut the lead in half, 2-1, then another midway through the 42nd minute tied the game after a goal by Carrie Sensenig.  W&M was able to settle themselves, however, and got back to the free-wheeling but controlling style of play that has served so well this season.  That led to a wild sequence at the other end of the field, when the Tribe was able to string four consecutive penalty corners together after Hughes was tripped up driving into the circle.

The first two attempts ended in blocked shots, but each time ODU also committed a foul that led to another corner.  On the third corner, Ellis' shot made it all the way to goalkeeper Lacey Frazier for a save, but again the Lady Monarchs committed a foul.  That led to the fourth and final corner, which was started by Goodwin on an insertion to senior captain Erin Menges (Richmond, Va.), who set the shot for Ellis to finish with a low shot to the corner and a restored 3-2 lead.  Over the final 20+ minutes, ODU kept up the attack with four more corners and seven more shots, but sophomore goalkeeper Morgan Connor (Bedford, N.Y.) made three saves and Menges had her league-best fifth defensive save of the year to preserve the win.

Starters
W&M: Morgan Connor (GK), Erin Menges, Annie Snead, Cata Days, Christie van de Kamp, Estelle Hughes, Bailey McCarthy, Booter Ellis, Cassidy Goodwin, Cammie Lloyd, Emma MacLeod
ODU: Lacey Frazier (GK), Julia Van Dorsten, Danielle Grega, Rebecca Birch, Anouk Vandersteen, Kristen Vick, Cameran Nery-Strickland, Erin Huffman, Alexis Gingerich, Carrie Sensenig, Alexa Ostoich

Inside the Numbers
- After W&M had a slim 3-2 lead in shots in the first half, ODU led the second 12-6 and the game 14-9.
- Corners also went for the Lady Monarchs, 9-6 including 8-4 in the second half.  All five goals scored came off of corners.
- Morgan Connor made four saves total in the game, while Lacey Frazier had one and Erin Menges a defensive save.  Every save for both teams came in the second half.

Notes
W&M's six-game winning streak is the longest since the 2003 season ... The next most-recent streak of at least six games came in 2002, a 9-0 run late in the year to propel W&M to the NCAA Tournament ... The Tribe's 11 wins this season are the most since 2004 ... Morgan Connor's four saves moved her up to 10th in school history with 181 career stops ... She also becomes just the seventh goalkeeper ever at W&M with 20 career victories ... Erin Menges' fifth defensive save of the year ties her career-best from last season, and moves her into a tie for third in the NCAA this season ... Booter Ellis scored her first goal of the season ... Goodwin had two assists in a game for second time this season.

Up Next
William & Mary stays on the road next weekend for a pair of key Colonial Athletic Association match-ups.  The Tribe heads to defending national champion and No. 8-ranked Delaware on Friday night, before facing Drexel on Sunday in Philadelphia.  The Tribe (3-0) and the Blue Hens (2-0) are the only undefeated teams in conference play this season.