Dear Friends of Tribe Athletics, 

I always look forward to Friday evenings, but Friday, Sept. 19 was even better than usual!  Dozens of friends, fans, family members, and alumni made their way to The William & Mary Alumni House for the induction ceremony of the nine newest members of our 2025 W&M Athletics Hall of Fame Class.

Pictured below is the Class of 2025 (left to right): B.W. Webb, Football, 2013; John Lowenhaupt, Men's Basketball, 1978; John Sauer, Director of Speed, Strength and Conditioning, 1988-2018; Grace Golden Saracino, Women's Lacrosse, 2011; Sarah Jonson, Women's Lacrosse, 2011; Erin McGonegal Entlich, Women's Soccer, 1993; Elaina Balouris Tabb, Women's XC/T&F, 2014; Tony Shaver, Men's Basketball, Head Coach, 2003-2019; and Steve Isaacs, Men's Golf, 1970.
 
I met so many wonderful people at the ceremony, and all of them were bursting with pride about the accomplishments of the class. I could have listened to their stories about our new Hall of Famers all night!  It was a memorable evening and a great reminder of the unbelievably talented student-athletes and coaches who have made the Tribe so proud.  If you would like to make a gift in honor of these outstanding individuals, click here. Congratulations to all for a well-deserved honor!

Notable

• Head Coach Mike London earned his 100th career win Saturday when the Tribe beat Charleston Southern 34-7.  The Tribe resumes its CAA slate Saturday at Villanova at 3:30 p.m.  London is pictured below with his wife, Regina, President Katherine Rowe, and members of his family.

• In the first three weeks of the cross-country season, William & Mary swept the CAA Weekly Awards twice. Senior Perry Irons was named CAA Women's Runner of the Week after leading the women's team to a second-place finish at the Virginia Invitational. On the men's side, junior Hayes Trapp earned CAA Men's Runner of the Week honors for the second time in his career. Earlier in the season, following the Tribe's performance at the Spider Alumni Open on September 2nd, Irons and sophomore Caleb Wilcox both received CAA Runner of the Week recognition.
• Gwen Doughty (pictured below) is the CAA's Women's Soccer Rookie of the Week.  She had nine saves last week to only one goal allowed, helping the Tribe to a pair of draws on the road to begin CAA play.

• Women's Tennis won four titles as it opened the fall season at the 30th Tribe Invitational. Francesca Davis (pictured below) claimed a crown in the Gold Singles Flight.  She paired with Tilda Larsson to win the Colonial Doubles Bracket. Winning the Red Singles Flight was Emma Pell, and teammates Sia Chaudry and Julia Viesi won the Coast Doubles Bracket.  The Tribe will compete next in the Cissie Leary Invitational Oct. 3-5.

• Men's Golf put together a strong showing at The Goat, hosted by Navy, in Annapolis. The Tribe finished fifth out of 16 teams over the 54 holes, shooting scores of 296-295-286.  Freshman Talon Dingledine led the way with a T-4 finish.
• Women's Golf put together its best round in nearly a decade in the Elon Invitational in Burlington, N.C.  The squad posted a 4-over 288 in the second round, thanks to a quartet of 72s, for William & Mary's best team score to par since October 2015. The Tribe finished the event at 38-over par and in ninth place.
• Senior Albert Hansen of Men's Tennis won the A2 Singles Flight at the season-opening Porter's Neck Invitational.  He won all four of his matches in straight sets.
• Women's Basketball, the defending CAA champions, will play an 18-game CAA schedule.  See the schedule here.

• Men's Basketball will play the University of Texas-El Paso (Nov. 24) and Abilene Christian (Nov. 25) in the 2025 Jacksonville Classic.  Last season, under first-year coach Brian Earl, the Tribe enjoyed one of the top turnarounds in the country, finishing with a 17-15 record.  The team has seven returning players.

The Overseas Option 
One of Athletics' most loyal friends, Milan Chakraborty '00, has produced a new documentary called "Imported" that is now streaming on Hulu.  The film is about U.S. basketball players who continue their playing careers overseas after college.  Based in Los Angeles, Milan is a 20-year veteran of the film industry and serves as the head of film at Marginal MediaWorks. He is also an adjunct lecturer in Film and Media Studies, and he frequently returns to campus for the Ampersand Film Festival and Women's Soccer matches. During his junior year, he was a student manager for the team.  

In total, 34 former Tribe standouts have gone on to sign professional contracts and play overseas. Most recently, three Tribe men's basketball players from last season signed professional contracts in Europe.  Gabe Dorsey '25 and his brother Caleb '25 are playing for teams in Slovakia's top division, and classmate Matteus Case '25 signed with a team in Portugal.  (Gabe, Matteus, and Caleb are pictured below)
 
Baseball Diplomacy 
Our colleagues across campus have developed a very cool online baseball trivia game  that asks questions about American and Japanese baseball history and is part of the U.S.-Japan Baseball Diplomacy Project.  Thanks go to Distinguished University Professor of Government Paul Manna, Government Chair Marcus Holmes, and William E. Pullen Associate Professor of History Hiroshi Kitamura, who gathered, proofed, and edited the game's questions. Two student assistants built the game code.  The game works this way—it's the bottom of the ninth and you're losing.  You must answer a series of questions to get a player on base and ultimately score.  Check it out on the US-Japan Baseball Diplomacy Project homepage.

Cheer on the Tribe
I'm hoping for a great turnout at our football game at Villanova this Saturday. Tribe Athletics and the W&M Alumni Association are hosting a pre-game gathering from noon to 3 p.m. at Gullifty's (1149 Lancaster Ave, Bryn Mawr, PA). You can enjoy appetizers and a cash bar on their outdoor patio before heading to the game. It's a free event, but we ask that you register  yourself and all guests in your party.  And if you need tickets, no problem!  You can purchase them here.

If you are in Williamsburg this weekend, there are plenty of Green & Gold sports to keep you busy!  Check out our composite calendar and make plans to watch your favorite team, either in person or online.

One more item for your calendar: Homecoming & Reunion Weekend is scheduled for October 16-19.  As usual, there will be numerous significant events and the opportunity to reconnect with friends and classmates.

Celebrate the Champions!
I hope that many of you will join us for the Women's Basketball CAA Banner & Ring Celebration on Saturday, October 18 from 11:30 to 12 p.m., when we can once again cheer for the gritty team that, as a nine-seed, scored its first CAA trophy and NCAA appearance.  After watching the CAA and NCAA banners raised in Kaplan, come on over to Zable Stadium to watch Tribe Football take on Elon.  Hope to see you all there!

Go Tribe!




Brian D. Mann
Director of Athletics