WILMINGTON, N.C. (Nov. 8, 2026)- The third-seeded William & Mary Women's Soccer team dropped a heartbreaker at top-seeded UNCW in the CAA Championship Semifinals on Sunday afternoon, 2-1.
The Tribe took an early lead just three minutes in and held the advantage for 53:33 against a Seahawks team that became the first squad in CAA history to go undefeated in league play. UNCW recorded a pair of second half goals to advance into Saturday's title match.
Sydney Incarnato tallied her first goal of the season to put the Tribe in front at UNCW Soccer Stadium. The Bernardsville, N.J., native's first-career tally came at a pivotal time in her 19
th appearance.
Gwen Doughty made a career-high 10 saves and was active in between the pipes, only allowing two goals on 25 shot attempts from the Seahawks.
Mia Abbey led the team with a pair of shots during Sunday's semifinals. Incarnato,
Ava Magnuson,
Kerys Palmer and
Ellie Leffler logged one shot apiece.
The Tribe wasted no time getting on the board at UNCW Soccer Stadium. After a corner was played to the backline, Abbey dribbled down the sideline and swung a bouncing cross right in front of the goalmouth.
Ashley DeLeo and Incarnato grappled for possession with the Seahawks goaltender and defenders before Incarnato buried the opening goal right on the doorstep at the 3:01 mark.
Top-seeded UNCW sprung on the attack after W&M's early goal. The Seahawks recorded 10 shots in the opening 45 minutes but the Green and Gold defense held strong logging five saves, including four by goalkeeper
Gwen Doughty. The Tribe went into halftime holding on to the 1-0 advantage.
In the second half, Kamrey Watkins provided the equalizer off a feed from Allie Planeaux in the 57
th minute to knot the score, 1-1.
As the two teams battled with a spot in the championship game on the line, the Tribe weathered the Seahawks offensive onslaught, including several key saves from Doughty. UNCW broke through with under 10 minutes to go as Planaeux chipped the keeper in the 81
st minute for the game-winner to send the Seahawks to the CAA Championship game.
W&M ended the 2026 campaign with a 5-8-5 overall record and a 3-3-3 mark in league competition. The Tribe advanced to the CAA Semifinals for the first time since 2023 and had four players garner all-league honors.
