WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The William & Mary lacrosse team will continue its CAA slate when it hosts Elon at Martin Family Stadium on Sunday at noon.
The contest will promote
Morgan's Message, which is an organization that seeks to amplify stories, resources and expertise to strengthen student-athlete mental health, build a community by and for athletes through peer-to-peer conversations and provide a platform for advocacy
Admission is free. William & Mary Athletics, in conjunction with the William & Mary Police Department, has implemented a clear bag policy that regulates the size and type of bag that may be carried into W&M Athletics facilities, including Busch Field, Kaplan Arena, Martin Family Stadium, Plumeri Park, and
Zable Stadium. Information as well as approved and prohibited items is available at
TribeAthletics.com.
Live stats will be available at
TribeAthletics.com, while video of the contest will be
streamed on LacrosseTV as the CAA Game of the Week.
Complete game day information is available below.
A Look at the Tribe
W&M enters the weekend with a 5-7 overall record and a 1-4 mark in conference play.
Paige Gilbert (25g, 16) leads the Tribe with 41 points, while
Ainsley Huizenga (18g, 18a) and
Anna Dawson (30g, 4a) have also provided outstanding production offensively. Gilbert has also come up big with 39 draw controls, while
Kate Draddy has also posted 39 draw controls and 25 points (19g, 6a).
Dawson ranks 10th in the CAA in goals per game (2.5), while Huizenga (1.5) and Gilbert (1.33) are seventh and eighth, respectively, in assists per contest.
Draddy (3.25) and Gilbert (3.25) also rank among the conference's top 10 in draw controls per game, while Draddy is eighth in ground balls per game (2.42).
Goalie
Marin Wilhelm is third in saves per contest (9.17) and ninth in ground balls (2.33).
As a team, W&M ranks third in the CAA in ground balls per game (18.25).
Scouting Elon
Despite losing at Delaware, 16-9, in its last contest, Elon enters the weekend having won three of its last four games and owns a 6-5 overall record and a 3-1 mark in conference play. The Phoenix will host No. 19 Stony Brook on Friday before squaring off against W&M on Sunday.
Sammy Fisher leads Elon with 38 points (29g, 9a) to go with 46 draw controls, while Ana Lee Vandiver has totaled 34 points (25g, 9a). MJ Santa Barbara has totaled a team-high 62 draw controls in just five games.
Defensively, Reagan Kuehn leads Elon with 19 caused turnovers and 23 ground balls.
As a team, Elon leads the CAA in draw controls per game (15.45), while it ranks 14th nationally in draw control percentage (.584).
| Matchup At A Glance |
|
W&M / Opp. |
Elon / Opp. |
| Goals Avg. |
11.5 / 14.2 |
11.2 / 12.0 |
| Shooting % |
.423 / .448 |
.399 / .526 |
| Assists |
57 / 83 |
50 / 70 |
| Ground Balls |
219 / 221 |
144 / 141 |
| Draw Controls |
148 / 195 |
170 / 121 |
| Turnovers |
176 / 169 |
153 / 159 |
| Caused Turnovers |
89 / 107 |
95 / 97 |
W&M-Elon All-Time Series
Elon controls the all-time series 7-2, and has won six of the last seven matchups.
Last Meeting vs. Elon
W&M fell at Elon, 18-11, last season. The Tribe trailed by just one goal, 8-7, midway through the third quarter following a score by
Ainsley Huizenga, but Elon utilized an 8-1 run to pull away for the conference victory.
Chloe Pierini and
Sophia Chiodo Ortiz led W&M offensively, as both standouts recorded their first career hat tricks with three goals apiece. Huizenga also came up big with a team-high four points (2g, 2a), while
Paige Gilbert posted four draw controls and three ground balls to go with an assist. Elon outshot W&M, 31-21, which included a 26-18 margin in attempts on goal. W&M owned an 18-15 advantage in ground balls and committed two fewer turnovers (15-17), but Elon controlled the draw circle, 23-8.
Last Time Out
W&M fell at Towson, 15-10, last Saturday. W&M owned a 4-2 lead after the first quarter, but Towson responded with a 10-0 run to take control of the contest. Although the Tribe outscored the Tigers, 6-2, during the remainder of the matchup, it was unable to get closer than the final margin.
Ainsley Huizenga led W&M with four points (3g, 1a), while
Paige Gilbert also recorded a hat trick on just four shots to go with two ground balls, a draw control and a caused turnover. Goalie
Marin Wilhelm registered a season-high 14 saves.
Century Club
Senior
Paige Gilbert continued her climb in the Tribe's record book with a pair of goals in the recent contest at Stony Brook, as she eclipsed the 100-point mark. The
Doylestown, Pa., native currently has 104 points (78g, 26a).
Record Watch
Senior
Ainsley Huizenga currently ranks sixth all-time at W&M in draw controls (121) and needs just two more to pass Sarah Jonson for fifth in the Tribe's all-time record book.
Kate Draddy ranks seventh at W&M with 118 draw, while
Paige Gilbert (112) ranks ninth.
Overtime Success
The Tribe has won four of its last six OT games dating back to 2019.
One for the Record Books
Ainsley Huizenga and
Paige Gilbert etched their names into W&M's record book during the win against VCU, as both standouts posted a pair of the best performances in program history. Huizenga equaled a single-game school record with six assists, while Gilbert's career-best nine draw controls ranks tied for fifth in school history. Additionally,
Anna Dawson scored a career-high six goals, which ranks just outside W&M's top-10 list.
CAA Player of the Week Honors
A trio of Tribe standouts have earned CAA weekly honors this season, as
Kate Draddy (offensive player of the week, 2/10),
Marin Wilhelm (defensive player of the week, 2/10) and
Alexis Savage (rookie of the week, 3/10) have all garnered the distinction.
Team Captains
W&M is led by a quartet of team captains this season -
Paige Gilbert,
Kate Draddy,
Claire Doto and
Sophia Chiodo Ortiz - as head coach
Kelyn Freedman announced the selections at the conclusion of the fall.
Academic Excellence
During the fall,
W&M Athletics was once again recognized for its academic excellence as it recorded the highest Federal Graduation Rate (FGR) among all Division I public institutions. Lax helped lead the way and earned a 100% GSR for the seventh straight season.
Up Next
Following the contest against Elon, W&M will return to action when it plays at Delaware next Saturday at noon.
