Friday, Nov. 8, No. 23 William and Mary faced off against Colonial Athletic Association rival Northeastern at Rullo Stadium in Newark, Delaware in the CAA semifinal. The Tribe (12-6, 5-1 CAA) was looking to keep its impressive season alive. Unfortunately for the Tribe, its season came to an end as the Huskies (11-7, 3-3 CAA) won in a 1-0 victory.
The first period featured both teams playing great defense, leading to a low number of corners and shots on the goal. In the fifth minute, Tribe senior forward Annie Snead provided the first scoring chance of the game with her shot on goal, which ultimately went wide. The Huskies were able to slowly regain possession of the ball and eventually draw a corner six minutes later by Huskies forward Alli Meehan. On this corner, Huskies defender Lauren Rowe had a shot that was saved by Tribe sophomore goalkeeper Kimi Jones, and Huskies forward Kassidy Anderson had a subsequent shot that was again saved by Jones. After the corner, the Tribe regained possession of the ball, and with this chance Tribe senior forward Cata Days had a shot on goal that was saved by Huskies goalkeeper Julia Gluyas. At the end of the period, the Tribe and the Huskies remained tied at 0-0.
In the second quarter, the Tribe came out playing hard. In the 21st minute, Tribe junior defender Haley Hopkins had a shot on goal that was saved by Gluyas. Hopkins regained the ball after this save and shot once more and was again blocked by Gluyas. Tribe junior midfielder Ella Donahue shot a minute later, but her scoring attempt was also saved by the dominant Gluyas. In the 23rd minute, Snead drew the Tribe’s first penalty corner of the game, on which Tribe senior midfielder Cassidy Goodwin’s shot was blocked. After the onslaught of Tribe power, the Huskies began to fight back more aggressively. They regained possession of the ball, and in the 24th minute, Huskies back Sam Bodo had a shot on goal that was stopped on a defensive save by Tribe freshman defender Audrey Domovich. While in the circle, Meehan again drew a penalty corner for the Huskies, their second of the game. However, the Huskies could not make anything of this scoring opportunity, and the Tribe regained its momentum. With a little over a minute left in the quarter, Snead again drew a penalty corner for the Tribe. Similar to the Huskies, the Tribe could not make anything of this corner, and the two teams went into the half tied at 0-0.
In the third period, neither team dominated the other, which made for some intense plays yet few scoring opportunities. In the 32nd minute, Huskies forward Kasidy Anderson had a shot on goal that was saved by Jones. Seven minutes later, senior forward Woodard Hooper had her shot go wide. Hooper had another scoring attempt go wide three minutes later, and the period ended still at 0-0.
Going into the fourth quarter, the Tribe needed to score to have any chance of a victory. This quarter featured some aggressive play, as exhibited by the two green cards that were given out. In the 51st minute, the Huskies’ Anderson received a green card from the referees, and three minutes later, Bodo was also given one. With less than two minutes in the game, both teams were desperate to score. The Huskies were able to come out on top when Anderson passed the ball to Huskies forward Camille O’Conor, who had a high shot from ten yards out sink into the back of the goal, giving O’Conor her ninth goal of the season and the Huskies their game winner. As the final buzzer sounded, the game ended with a Huskies victory 1-0.
This loss in the CAA semifinals marked the end of the Tribe’s 2019 season. The season began in mid-August, and though the Tribe began with a rough start, they were able to get into their groove around late September, eventually going on to achievements such as beating No. 5 Louisville in double overtime and having an eight-game winning streak. The Tribe finished 12-7 and 5-1 in the CAA.
