WILLIAMSBURG, Va.— For the first time since November of 2019, the William & Mary men's soccer team scored four goals against a CAA opponent, taking care of UNCW in the conference home opener, 4-0, on Saturday.
 
Tre Barrett led the way for W&M (4-5-0, 2-1-0 CAA) with a pair of goals, while Evan Rabush handed out two assists.
 
The offensive onslaught began early for the Tribe, with Sam Delgado being on the receiving end of a cross from Rabush in the 12^th minute. Delgado was able to finish off the play in-stride on top of the 6-yard box for his third goal of the season, tying the team lead.
 
Ryan Eapen was called on to make a save in net for the Tribe moments later to keep the game 1-0, before W&M quickly tacked on another in the 17^th minute.
 
Aidan Morrison made a run towards the top left of the 18-yard box but was cut off by a defender. The sophomore midfielder turned around to see Barrett trailing the play and laid the ball off to the freshman. Barrett did the rest of the work, rifling a shot from 22 yards out that blew past the keeper and into the bottom right of the goal.
 
The Tribe then turned their efforts to defense, not allowing the Seahawks to place a shot on net for the rest of the half, and after 45 minutes the hosts were still in front 2-0.
 
W&M made the most of their opportunities in the first half, only taking three total shots with two of them finding the back of the goal.
 
After the halftime break the Green and Gold got right back to work on the attack with Rabush playing the role as table setter again.
 
The sophomore played a perfectly weighted ball ahead to Diogo Branco in the 48^th minute, who finished off his run by beating the UNCW keeper and cashing in on his first goal, and points, of the season.
 
Now holding a 3-0 advantage, the Tribe focused in on the possession game and picking up another three points in the CAA standings.
 
Just as they did in the first half, the W&M backline made things hard on the UNCW attack, forcing them to take non-threatening shots from the outside.
 
The Seahawks were able to mount a couple threatening chances however including a shot ricocheting off the crossbar in the 59^th minute.
 
Almost 10 minutes later, Eapen was called on to make his best play of the evening as he left his position on the goal line and came out to face an attacking Seahawk. The sophomore keeper timed his slide just right, soaking the shot attempt and guiding it out of harm's way.
 
Barrett decided to put a cherry on top of the dominating 90 minutes when he used his blistering speed to track down a ball and maneuver around the goalie for an 86^th minute goal, making the final score 4-0.
 
The goal was not just the second of the night for the Hampton, Va. native, but his third of the year, tying him with Delgado for the team lead in just his first collegiate season.
 
W&M was just as efficient in the second half as they were in the first, scoring on all four of their shots on goal for the match while being outshot by the Seahawks 10-7.
 
Up Next
The Tribe is back in action next Saturday when they face a staunch road test against No. 14 Elon. Kick is set for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on FloFC.