William and Mary’s season came to an abrupt end this weekend. After dropping its semifinal match to Northeastern 2-1 in overtime, the Tribe was excluded from the season ending, 48-team College Cup.

“I know how the [NCAA selection] process works,” Head Coach Chris Norris said. “Unfortunately, there are many things out of our control, and a lot of those things hurt us this year. This was one of the most talented teams we have had here in a while, and we are good enough to be playing still, and we are not.”

The squad finished with a 13-5-1 (8-3-1 CAA) record and a 7-1-1 road mark. Senior forward Andrew Hoxie established himself as one of the premier forwards in the country, garnering the CAA’s Player of the Year honor. The Tribe boasted the most potent offense in the conference, averaging two goals per game, while the defense held opponents to one goal or less in 14 of 19 games; and yet, these numbers offer little consolation for the unanticipated end.

“There always has to be somebody that is close and does not get in, and we are that team,” Norris said. “[We are] more than capable of competing in the tournament.”

In what turned out to be its final match of the year against the Huskies Friday night, the Tribe conceded a 52nd-minute goal before junior midfielder Nat Baako broke through the Huskies suffocating defense to score in the 72nd minute.

Hoxie faced the defense outside of the box before splitting the back line with a soft pass to junior midfielder Ian Stowe. From the left side, Stowe sent a low ball to a streaking Baako, who finished behind Huskies keeper Scott Partridge for his third goal of the season.

“We responded well to their goal,” Baako said. “We kept our composure, even though we were down 1-0 in the semifinals, and we kept our belief that we were going to get the goal back, which we did.”

Baako nearly pushed the College ahead two minutes later when senior midfielder Price Thomas played a ball in from the left side of the pitch that eluded junior forward Alan Koger. Baako anticipated the chance and beat the defense to the serve, forcing Partridge to charge off his line and make a sprawling save.

With the Huskies holding a 15-13 edge in shots and a 9-5 advantage in corners, the squads headed into overtime.

Unfortunately for the Tribe, the Huskies extra session goal materialized in a similar manner to the opening score. Northeastern’s quick left back Santiago Bedoya skated down the left side before pivoting in the corner to send a powerful low ball across the box to Andre Ciliotta. Ciliotta, standing unmarked at the back post, tapped in the overtime tally to give the Huskies a 2-1 victory.

“The whole game was very back-and-forth,” Norris said. “I think it would not have been unfair for either team to have won the game on the night. [The University of North Carolina-Wilmington] ended up winning the tournament [1-0], but Northeastern might have been the best team that we played in the league this year.”

The season ends with the College amounting its highest win total since 2002 (15) but falling one step short of its ultimate goal of making it into the NCAA’s field of 48.

The College has two key features this season that former teams have lacked, and interestingly they both play on the Tribe’s frontline.

Freshman forwards Emily Correal and Jaclyn McKenna add both height and depth to the Tribe attack this season, ushering in a new style of play that will focus less on a constant bombardment of three-pointers and more on the inside play of senior center Tiffany Benson and the slashing ability of sophomore guard Taysha Pye, a CAA All-Rookie team selection last season.

“We don’t have the shooters anymore, and I’m waiting for everybody to figure that out,” Head Coach Debbie Taylor said. “So it’s not our first look anymore. We actually have the ability to throw the ball inside.”

An undersized and undermanned team for most of last season because of injuries, the Tribe will look to Benson, a preseason All-CAA first team selection as well as the reigning CAA defensive player of the year, to establish an inside presence this season along with Correal and McKenna.

“The size really helps us. We’ve never really had a lot of size,” Taylor said. “Tiffany Benson was our center for three years, but now we have 6’3”, 6’3” and 6’1” along the frontline.”

Sophomore guard Katherine DeHenzel returns to the starting lineup after missing last season because of injury and will combine with Pye and sophomore Janine Aldridge to form one of the youngest backcourts in the conference.

“We’re going through a little bit of a shift,” Taylor said. “We’re going to play a little bit of a faster game. We’re going to take better shots, hopefully.”

The Tribe will need all of its weapons to compete in a tough CAA conference this season. Delaware, James Madison, Old Dominion and Drexel all either return or add key contributors, slotting the College at ninth in the preseason conference poll.

Despite the low expectations from outsiders, Taylor is pleased with where her team is ranked heading into the season.

“I like that we’re going to have to fight for respect this year,” Taylor said. “But I think this group can be as good as anybody come tournament time if they keep getting better.”

Flat Hat staff writer Mike Barnes contributed reporting to this article.

Breaking down the Tribe

170: The number of offensive rebounds senior forward Tiffany Benson totaled last season, not only a school record, but also 57 more rebounds than the next best total in the CAA.
9: The College’s preseason CAA ranking.
6: The number of conference wins the Tribe accumulated last year.
19.1: The number of points then-freshman guard Taysha Pye averaged over the final 11 games of last season.
15: School records set by the College last season, including team highs in free throw attempts, blocks, turnovers and margin of victory.

Guards

In the backcourt, the Tribe expects to benefit from a young crop of players. Leading the way will be the sophomore triumvirate of Taysha Pye, Janine Aldridge and Katherine DeHenzel. Pye, a CAA All-Rookie selection, returns from a stellar freshman campaign in which she averaged 9.9 points. Aldridge provides the College’s greatest perimeter threat, as she finished second in the conference in three-point percentage last year. Additionally, the Tribe welcomes DeHenzel back from a year of inactivity due to injury and expects her to step in right away. Head Coach Debbie Taylor depends on this group to provide leadership and experience for the rest of her young team.

Forwards

The College possesses two powerful weapons. Senior Tiffany Benson, the reigning CAA Defensive Player of the Year and a Preseason First Team All-CAA honoree, is widely regarded as the Tribe’s most intimidating player and a major defensive threat. Last season, Benson was the conference leader in several categories, most notably offensive rebounds. Joining Benson at forward is freshman Emily Correal. A highly touted recruit from Venetia, Pa., Correal won honorable mention All-American honors and was ESPN’s 12th best forward in the class of 2013. Both players are skilled on both ends of the court and will provide the Tribe with versatility.

Center

Freshman Jaclyn McKenna is the College’s first “true center” in three years. McKenna, like Correal, is a highly prized recruit who hopes to make great strides in her first season with the Tribe. McKenna provided a steady inside presence in the season-opening victory over Radford for the College and will be a vital cog in the team’s success.

Men’s basketball: Tribe falls to Harvard in triple-overtime thriller

The College (0-2) suffered an 87-85 defeat Sunday to Harvard, losing in triple overtime on a last second three-pointer from Harvard guard Jeremy Lind. Sophomore forward Quinn McDowell led all scorers with a game-high 23 points. Senior guards David Schnieder and Danny Summner tallied 18 and 19 points respectively. Senior guard Sean McCurdy put the Tribe up with 3.6 left in the third overtime before Lind’s three-pointer gave the Crimson the victory.

Women’s basketball: College opens season with blow out win over Radford

Sophomore guard Taysha Pye led all scorers with 17 points, scoring 11 in the first half to lead the Tribe (1-0) to a 70-40 season opening victory over Radford Sunday. The Tribe utilized hot starts from freshmen forward Emily Correal and center Jaclyn McKenna, both starting their first collegiate game, to take a 21-4 lead in the game’s first 10 minutes. Sophomore guard Katherine DeHenzel tallied 5 assists and 7 rebounds in her first game back from a knee injury suffered last season.

Cross country: Men win Southeast Regional title, women tie for fourth

Both the men’s and women’s cross country teams competed in the NCAA Southeast Region Championships Saturday, with the men taking home their second consecutive title and the women finishing in fourth. Seniors Patterson Wilhelm and John Grey led the way for the men. Seniors Meghan Burns and Emily Anderson helped the women finish in fourth place, finishing 15th and 17th to help the Tribe tie their best-ever finish. The women will learn Monday night whether their finish will earn them a spot in the NCAA Championships.

Entering Saturday’s contest against no. 7 New Hampshire, there was no question that the Tribe could play with any opponent in the country — an 8-1 record and the top-ranked offense and defense in the CAA had sufficiently proven that. What remained to be seen was whether no. 5 William and Mary possessed the mental fortitude to take down top teams in close games. The squad folded earlier in the season against then-no. 2 Villanova and had not had a game decided by less than 12 points all year.

On Senior Day at Zable Stadium, the College got just the game it needed to test that question, absorbing all it could handle from a tough Wildcat squad and ultimately prevailing 20-17 on a late field goal from senior Brian Pate.

In a contest that felt every bit like a playoff game, the College proved that it could thrive under pressure, surviving a back and forth slugfest with one of the top teams in the nation.

“I thought we were pretty much relentless out there today,” Head Coach Jimmye Laycock said. “We knew going in that it was going to be a good one, and it could very well come down to the last team that had the ball. We played all four quarters very hard against a good team, and that’s what you have to do.”

From the opening moments, there seemed little doubt that the contest was destined for a dramatic ending, and the Tribe did not disappoint.

With the score deadlocked at 17-apiece, senior quarterback R.J. Archer began the game’s decisive drive at his own 28-yard line with 8:17 remaining in the fourth quarter. The senior was ice-cold under pressure, marching the College 52 yards down the field in 11 plays to set up the winning field goal.

“It was just another challenge,” Archer said. “We went down there and would have liked to get the touchdown, but Brian came in and got the field goal, which took a lot of nerve.”

Nerve was in ample supply for the Tribe all afternoon.

After jumping out to an early 10-3 lead, New Hampshire looked to be gaining momentum as the College’s offense stagnated.

Sophomore tailback Jonathan Grimes put the squad on his back, breaking loose for a 54-yard run through the left side of the Wildcat defense, and setting up the Tribe in New Hampshire territory.

“That sparked us,” Grimes said.

Junior tailback Courtland Marriner capped the drive with a five-yard rushing touchdown to even the score at 10.

New Hampshire came right back, storming into Tribe territory in only three plays before setting up a crucial fourth down and two at the College’s 34-yard line. There, senior defensive end Adrian Tracy burst through the line to bring down fullback Sean Jellison in the backfield, one of seven tackles and two sacks for the senior on the day.

The stop galvanized the Tribe, who would hold the Wildcats scoreless for over two quarters in the middle of the contest. The College’s defensive line neutralized a powerful New Hampshire rushing attack, holding the Wildcats to a mere 27 yards on the ground.

“It doesn’t really matter how fast you are when there’s a wall in front of you,” senior defensive tackle Sean Lissemore said.

Lissemore came up strong against the passing game as well. With the score still deadlocked at 10 midway through the third quarter, the senior intercepted quarterback R.J. Toman on a third-down play at the Wildcat 20.

Three plays later, the Tribe capitalized on the short field to score a crucial, go-ahead touchdown, as Archer found junior wide receiver Chase Hill on a fade route in the corner of the end zone.

New Hampshire would even the score midway through the fourth quarter. On a fourth and seven at the Tribe 35, Toman swung a short pass to wide receiver Joey Orlando, who outsprinted his defender to the end zone. The score forced the College to recover mentally after coming up short on the opportunity to seal the game.

“We knew it was going to be a fight and were in it for the long haul,” Lissemore said. “Regardless of what happened, we were ready to go.”

At that point, it was up to Archer and the offense, and the senior responded with the first game-winning fourth-quarter drive of his career.

After Hill was unable to bring in his second touchdown of the day on a third-down play from the New Hampshire 20, Pate came on with the game on the line.

The senior’s kick split the uprights with 2:54 remaining, and the defense was called for one final stand. New Hampshire was unable to pick up a first down after four plays, and the game came to a close with Archer taking a knee at the New Hampshire 15.

The victory was a crucial step toward home field advantage and a potential FCS seed for the College. But it left the Tribe with bigger goals in mind, as the regular season-finale against no. 4 Richmond looms.

“We’re not satisfied as a whole,” Tracy said. “There’s something still out there that we want; we’re still hungry and still striving for it, working hard week in and week out. That attitude that we’ve taken the whole season is what’s gotten us this far. Just not being satisfied.”

A win against the Spiders would mark the first time in College history that the program accumulated 10 wins in the regular season.

The Flat Hat is live in the Zable stadium press box with updates, analysis, news and more as the College takes on the Wildcats.

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