WILLIAMSBURG, Va.—The William & Mary women's soccer team will head across the water on Sunday evening for a meeting with 757 foe Old Dominion in Norfolk.
Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN+ as the Tribe looks to grab its first win of the season following a 1-1 draw with George Mason in the season opener on Friday.
TRIBE NOTES
A Look Back
Julie Shackford's squad heads into the fresh campaign after an 8-10-0 mark last year and a 3-7-0 record in CAA play. The brightest spot of the Tribe's season came early on, ripping off four straight wins, the fourth being over local rival Richmond, to start the year 4-2. The stretch was the W&M's first four-game win streak since 2017 and first under
Shackford's leadership.
Last Time Out
The Green and Gold opened the year a day later than expected after weather forced the season opener against George Mason to be moved from Thursday to Friday. The Tribe and Patriots battled in a physical match that saw Mason open the scoring in the 44
th minute. W&M found an equalizer off the foot of
Lindsay Wilson in the 74
th minute leading to a 1-1 draw to open the 2025 campaign.
They Know the Drill
One year after returning 23 players, the fourth most in Division I, the Tribe will feature 22 returners in 2025. The returners accounted for 13 of W&M's 24 goals a season ago, led by Crain's seven.
Kenley Campbell,
Lindsay Wilson, Molly
Widderich, Nora
Green-Orset and
Leila Greene join Crain as the group of six returning players who started 11-plus contests a year ago.
All About Ivey
There is little doubt that
Ivey Crain has been the catalyst of the William & Mary offense throughout the first three years of her college career. The Milton, Ga. native has led the Tribe in scoring and goals in each of her first three seasons in Williamsburg, posting 15 points and seven goals in each of the last two seasons after a breakout freshman campaign of 23 points and nine goals in 2022.
Her 53 career points in 57 matches have brought along plenty of accolades. Crain was named Preseason All-CAA for the third time in as many years on Monday by the conference's coaches. The Tribe forward has been All-CAA Second Team following each of the last two seasons and was the league's Freshman of the Year and a first team selection in 2022.
Defensive Duo
Two other Tribe players earned honors on Monday. The
backline duo of
Kenley Campbell and
Nora Green-Orset were both named Preseason All-CAA Honorable Mention. Campbell quickly established herself as a staple on the Tribe defense as a freshman last year, playing the full 90 minutes in each of the last nine matches.
Green-Orset heads into her senior year looking to be a leader on the W&M
backline having posted four goals and five assists for 13 career points in 52 matches. The Arlington, Va. product has started 30 of the last 34 matches she has played in.
Same Conference, New Divisions
The CAA announced this summer a new divisional model in soccer, breaking the league into the CAA North and CAA South. The Tribe is joined in the South by Elon, Charleston,
UNCW, Campbell and Hampton. W&M received two first place votes in the division's preseason poll and was picked third behind Elon and Charleston. The top three teams from both divisions will advance to the conference's postseason tournament.
Familiar Foes
ODU and the Tribe are very familiar local rivals, with W&M holding a sizeable 24-6-2 advantage in the series. The Monarchs have found success of late in the series however, going 3-1-1 over the last five meetings. W&M will be looking for its first win in Norfolk since 2016.
Setting Up Shop in VA
The Tribe will not leave the state of Virginia until the final non-conference game at Delaware on September 12, the eighth game of the year. W&M will host four of its first seven games at Martin Family Stadium while also visiting Old Dominion, James Madison and Virginia Tech before having to cross state lines.
Scouting ODU
The Monarchs have been the cream of the crop in the Sun Belt as of late, winning conference titles in 2022 and 2023. 2024 saw ODU post a 10-6-4 record while going 7-1-2 at home. The Monarchs began their season on Thursday playing to a 2-2 draw at No. 19 Georgetown.
