William and Mary continued rolling through its schedule, picking up two comfortable road wins this weekend. The Tribe (9-2-1, 3-1-0 CAA) defeated North Carolina-Wilmington 2-0 Friday before cruising to a 2-0 win over College of Charleston.
The College needed just five minutes to score Friday against UNC-Wilmington (5-6-1, CAA 0-3-0), jumping to a 1-0 lead. Junior goalkeeper Caroline Casey fired a long pass to junior forward Samantha Cordum at midfield. Cordum took the pass from midfield into the Seahawks’ goalbox, firing a shot from the right side that sliced into the net. The goal was Cordum’s seventh of the season and gave the Tribe an early advantage.
The College continued its oppressive control over the UNC-Wilmington offense in the first half, allowing just a single shot before halftime. In contrast, the Tribe kept the Seahawks under constant fire, shooting eight times before intermission. The College eventually broke through with a second goal in the 41st minute after senior defender Emily Fredrikson rebounded a deflected corner kick and fired a shot past the UNC-Wilmington keeper. The goal gave the College a 2-0 lead and a strong halftime advantage.
The game shifted after halftime, as the Seahawks out-shot the College 5-1 in the second half. However, armed with a 2-0 advantage and a staunch defense, the Tribe ensured that the outcome was never in doubt. Only two of the Seahawks’ shot attempts wound up on target, and Casey stopped both to preserve the Tribe’s 2-0 lead until the final whistle. The shutout was Casey’s sixth clean sheet of the season.
The College’s defense built on its success with a dominant Sunday victory over College of Charleston. Casey secured her seventh shutout of the year without even needing to make a save.
Once again, the College came out firing in the first half against the Cougars (5-8, 1-3 CAA). Cordum launched the Tribe’s first shot of the match in the fifth minute, and freshman defender Haley Kent added a second attempt in the seventh minute, putting the Cougars under immediate pressure that never let up.
When halftime rolled around, the game was a scoreless deadlock, but the College held a 7-0 advantage in shots on goal. Only a heroic performance from goalkeeper Lauren Killian kept the Tribe from tearing open the floodgates for multiple goals during the first half.
Ironically, it was a Cougars’ error that handed the Tribe its first goal of the game. Senior forward and team captain Emory Camper launched a throw-in into the Cougars’ goal box, and the ball deflected off a Charleston defender and into the net. The own-goal gave the Tribe a 1-0 advantage in the 54th minute.
The Tribe quickly expanded its lead with a goal in the 63rd minute. The sequence began when Camper cut diagonally into the Charleston box and sent a shot on target. Although Killian stopped the attempt, Camper corralled the rebound and fired another shot. Camper’s attempt evaded Killian, gliding into the net and giving the Tribe a 2-0 lead. Once again, the College held firm, and the 2-0 score proved to be the final margin of victory.
By the end of the match, the College had out-shot the Cougars 19-3, including a staggering 12-0 advantage in shots on goal. The victory was the Tribe’s eighth win in nine games, and the College has outscored opponents 23-4 in that span. With just five games left in the regular season, the Tribe is once again in excellent position to make a splash in the Colonial Athletic Association tournament.
The College returns to Williamsburg Friday, where it will take on Delaware at 7 p.m. at Martin Family Stadium. The matchup is the first of three straight home games for the Tribe, which will conclude its home season against Elon Sunday, Oct. 19.
