Field Hockey: Red-hot Tribe knocks off #5 Louisville

JAMIE HOLT / THE FLAT HAT

Thursday, Oct. 24, William and Mary faced off against No. 5 Louisville at Busch Field in Williamsburg. The Tribe was on a six-game winning streak, coming off of a 3-2 overtime victory versus Lafayette the previous Sunday. The Tribe forced an upset when it defeated the Cardinals (13-3) in a dramatic 2-1 double overtime victory.  

In the first period, the Cardinals were dominant. The Tribe had one shot on goal, no penalty corners and no momentum to build upon. Just a minute into the game, the Cardinals already had a scoring attempt when Cardinals midfielder Mercedes Pastor had a shot on goal that ultimately went high. A minute later, Cardinals defender Carter Ayars drew the first penalty corner of the game, on which Tribe sophomore goalkeeper Kimi Jones saved the shot by Ayars. The Cardinals had another chance to score when Ayars drew another penalty corner four minutes later, but, yet again, Jones recorded a save, this time on a shot by Cardinals defender Alli Bitting. After two more shots on goal by the Cardinals, Ayars was awarded a penalty stroke, on which she scored her fifth goal of the season. The Tribe got one shot in with four minutes left in the period, but it was saved by Cardinals goalkeeper Hollyn Barr, and the period ended with the Tribe trailing the Cardinals 1-0 

In the second quarter, the Tribe regained their footing and began to match the Cardinals level of aggression. Because of this more evenlymatched playing style, the quarter was not as one-sided in terms of shots on goal or corners. A minute in, the Tribe had a scoring attempt from senior forward Woodard Hooper, though her shot went wide left. As the ball came back towards the Tribe goal, Cardinals midfielder Mattie Tabor was able to shoot, but the ball went wide right. The next scoring attempt came ten minutes after this, when Cardinals midfielder Erica Cooper shot on goal, but her shot was saved by Jones. Going into the half, the score remained 1-0 with the Cardinals beating the Tribe. 

In the third period, both the Tribe and the Cardinals established some good plays and scoring opportunities. Just a minute in, the Cardinals drew their third penalty corner of the game from Ayars, though they were unable to get a shot on goal. Soon after, the Tribe regained control and Hooper had a shot on goal that was saved by Barr. Just twenty seconds later, Tribe senior midfielder Annie Snead drew a penalty corner. On this corner, Tribe senior midfielder Cassidy Goodwin had her shot on goal saved by Barr. Tribe sophomore midfielder Cara Menges shot the rebound back towards the goal, but Barr continued her dominant performance and saved the ball again. After these good chances for the Tribe, the Cardinals began to gain more and more time with the ball as they continued to gain possession. Cardinals forward Biz Allgeier had a shot blocked, but soon after Ayars again drew a penalty corner for the Cardinals. On the corner, Cardinals forward Whena Munn’s shot on goal was saved by Jones. The Tribe drew one more penalty corner, again by Snead, but after no shot, the period ended with the Cardinals still leading by one 

Going into the fourth quarter, the Tribe needed to score to stay in the fight. This looked unlikely early on, with Ayars drawing another penalty corner for the Cardinals, though Cardinals forward Bethany Russ had her shot blocked. After another shot by Cardinals midfielder Minna Tremonti that was saved by Jones, the Tribe got back possession and power. Tribe senior midfielder Christie van de Kamp passed the ball into the circle from the side corridor, where Menges got the ball in stride and shot on the goal. Barr was unable to save this fast play, and with just five minutes left, the Tribe had tied the Cardinals 1-1. The period ended, and the Tribe went into overtime with the fifthranked team in the country.  

In overtime, the Cardinals came out with a new fire. Both Cooper and Russ had shots on goal that were saved by Jones, keeping the Tribe’s chances alive. Bitting drew a penalty corner, though Russ’ shot went wide left. At the end of the tenminute overtime, it was still 1-1, and the Tribe and the Cardinals went into double overtime.  

A minute into the double overtime, the Tribe was awarded a penalty corner, which provided their chance to win the game. However, van de Kamp’s shot on this corner went wide left, and the Cardinals got a chance to score again. Jones saved a shot by Cooper, and the Tribe regained possession of the ball. Tribe junior defender Haley Hopkins passed to freshman forward Sally Snead, who dribbled the ball down and passed back to Hopkins near the goal, where Hopkins was able to shoot the ball into the center net and score the game-winner.  

With 73 minutes of hard play, the Tribe beat the Cardinals in double overtime 2-1. The Tribe is now on a seven-game winning streak. In the next match, the Tribe will have the momentum behind them from this win when it plays Northeastern Oct. 27 at Busch Field in Williamsburg at 1 p.m.  

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