WILLIAMSBURG, Va.- The William & Mary field hockey team will prepare for a pair of road tests this weekend against No. 20 Monmouth and No. 17 Lafayette. 
The Tribe will take on No. 20 Monmouth on Friday at 3 p.m. from So Sweet A Cat Field in West Long Branch, N.J. The contest will be streamed live on FloCollege with Luke Meli on the call from the Garden State.
 
On Sunday, the Green and Gold will take on Lafayette for an 11 a.m. start at Rappolt Field in Easton, Pa. Jacob Smedley will have the call on ESPN+.
 
LAST TIME OUT
In its last contest, W&M (3-9, 1-2 CAA) earned its first shutout of the year blanking Bellarmine, 2-0, at Busch Field. The Tribe relied on first half goals from Sophie Ermellini and Anya Green to pick up a non-conference victory. Ava Rossman and Sam Daly recorded assists in the winning effort in Williamsburg. 

VS. RANKED OPPONENTS
The Tribe will take on its third and fourth opponents ranked in the top-20 of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association poll this weekend. Earlier this season, W&M fell to then-No. 20 Old Dominion and then-No. 6 Duke. 

It marks the sixth-straight year the Tribe has taken on ranked opponents in consecutive contests, dating back to 2021. W&M is seeking its first victory over a top-20 side since it upset then-No. 12 Wake Forest on the road on Sept. 1, 2023, 2-1. 

NEW TO THE SCORING TALLY
Senior duo Sophie Eremellini and Anya Green both added their first goals of the 2026 campaign on Sunday's 2-0 win over Bellarmine. Through 12 games, 12 different Tribe student-athletes have found the back of the net led by Josie Mae Gruendel and Hailey Haynes, with three goals apiece. 

CARI GETS THE NOD
Junior goalkeeper Emma Cari got her start of the season on Sunday logging a clean sheet. The Emmaus, Pa., native played 54:54 making one stop and has appeared in five games this season.

SERIES HISTORY
The Tribe lead the all-time series against Monmouth, 7-2, dating back 15 years. W&M won the first seven meetings between the two programs before the Hawks have taken each of the last two. The last victory for the Green and Gold came on Nov. 5, 2023, when current Assistant Coach Lauren Curran netted a hat trick to propel the Tribe to a CAA Championship in a 3-2 triumph over Monmouth. 

W&M and Lafayette will meet for the seventh time and the second straight season with the Tribe leading all-time series, 5-1. Coach Ellis' squad won last year's meeting, 2-1, behind a comeback effort spearheaded by Josie Mae Gruendel, who scored both goals off of penalty corners. 

HAWK WATCH
Monmouth enters the contest with an 8-3 record and a 3-0 mark in CAA play. The Hawks have suffered back-to-back losses against Yale and then-No. 19 Michigan after engineering a seven-game winning streak. 

Milia Frye leads the Monmouth attack with 11 goals, three assists, 25 points and 40 shots. The junior ranks seventh in the country logging 2.7 goals per game and paces the CAA in goals per game, total points and shots. 
LEOPARD SCOUT
Lafayette enters Sunday's contest with an 11-2 record and a 4-0 mark in Patriot League competition. The Leopards have won 10 of their last 11 contests, including the last four victories by a single goal and a pair shootout wins. 

Lafeyette has prided itself on having one of the most stout defensive units in all of NCAA Division I field hockey this season. The Leopards have posted six shutouts and rank sixth in the country in goals against average (0.78).

UP NEXT
Following this weekend's contests, the Tribe will remain on its three-game road stint when it takes on Hofstra on Friday, Oct. 23 at 3 p.m. on Long Island. 

FOLLOW THE TRIBE
Fans can keep up with the Tribe by following @WMTribeFH on X/Twitter and Instagram.