Sorry, nothing personal to Williams and/or Marys (y'all seem like a lovely couple). But it's GAMEDAY in Aggieland!
Texas A&M faces the College of William & Mary at 6PM tonight at Ellis Field.
First, a little about the school itself because it's rather interesting. The college of William & Mary was founded in 1693 by order of King William III and Queen Mary II (the name makes sense now, doesn't it?). It is the second oldest college in the United States, behind Harvard. The school is located in Williamsburg, Virginia and boasts an attendance of 8,484. Their sports teams' use of the Indian moniker was phased out earlier than most as they switched to "The Tribe" moniker in 1978. Their official mascot has been a Griffin since 2010.
You want notable alumni? How about Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, John Tyler, John Marshall, and Henry Clay? Heck, George Washington even took classes at the college. A little more recently, Dr. Robert Gates earned his bachelor's degree from the school and now serves as the chancellor of William & Mary. It is unknown if he completed the W&M Triathlon.
All of that with nothing to say about their athletic programs? Well, they do have two national championships, both in men's tennis (1947-1948), and they tend to compete well against the other schools of the unnoticed Colonial Athletic Association. However, it is soccer where the program really shines.
William & Mary's women's soccer team has appeared in the NCAA Tournament field 25 times and recorded 36 consecutive winning seasons before hitting a snag in 2017 with a 8-10-2 record. Julie Shackford is a former player for The Tribe and is the first year head coach for her alma mater.
This season, W&M has gotten off to a 3-3 start. W&M began with 3 consecutive losses to Maryland (1-2), Dayton (1-2 OT) and Virginia (0-3) before reeling off 3 straight wins against Coastal Carolina (2-0), Liberty (2-1), and Bucknell (3-2). W&M did have a match scheduled with South Carolina, but it was cancelled due to weather.
I wouldn't suggest The Tribe has a dynamic attack, but their 9 goals have been scored by 7 different players. William & Mary's two keepers have faced 30 shots on goal and registered 20 saves. That's a save percent of .6666 (repeating of course) and a goal against average of 1.65.
The Aggies and The Tribe have played each other once before. A&M beat the #5 Tribe in 1995 2-1, marking their first ever win over a top ten team.
I think the Ags should have the run of play in this one and W&M should not pose much of a scoring threat. I like A&M to repeat the scoring line of the Virginia/W&M match: 3-0.
Texas A&M faces the College of William & Mary at 6PM tonight at Ellis Field.
First, a little about the school itself because it's rather interesting. The college of William & Mary was founded in 1693 by order of King William III and Queen Mary II (the name makes sense now, doesn't it?). It is the second oldest college in the United States, behind Harvard. The school is located in Williamsburg, Virginia and boasts an attendance of 8,484. Their sports teams' use of the Indian moniker was phased out earlier than most as they switched to "The Tribe" moniker in 1978. Their official mascot has been a Griffin since 2010.
You want notable alumni? How about Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, John Tyler, John Marshall, and Henry Clay? Heck, George Washington even took classes at the college. A little more recently, Dr. Robert Gates earned his bachelor's degree from the school and now serves as the chancellor of William & Mary. It is unknown if he completed the W&M Triathlon.
All of that with nothing to say about their athletic programs? Well, they do have two national championships, both in men's tennis (1947-1948), and they tend to compete well against the other schools of the unnoticed Colonial Athletic Association. However, it is soccer where the program really shines.
William & Mary's women's soccer team has appeared in the NCAA Tournament field 25 times and recorded 36 consecutive winning seasons before hitting a snag in 2017 with a 8-10-2 record. Julie Shackford is a former player for The Tribe and is the first year head coach for her alma mater.
This season, W&M has gotten off to a 3-3 start. W&M began with 3 consecutive losses to Maryland (1-2), Dayton (1-2 OT) and Virginia (0-3) before reeling off 3 straight wins against Coastal Carolina (2-0), Liberty (2-1), and Bucknell (3-2). W&M did have a match scheduled with South Carolina, but it was cancelled due to weather.
I wouldn't suggest The Tribe has a dynamic attack, but their 9 goals have been scored by 7 different players. William & Mary's two keepers have faced 30 shots on goal and registered 20 saves. That's a save percent of .6666 (repeating of course) and a goal against average of 1.65.
The Aggies and The Tribe have played each other once before. A&M beat the #5 Tribe in 1995 2-1, marking their first ever win over a top ten team.
I think the Ags should have the run of play in this one and W&M should not pose much of a scoring threat. I like A&M to repeat the scoring line of the Virginia/W&M match: 3-0.
