PHILADELPHIA, PA. 10/16/2015 – The Tribe of William and Mary put offensive pressure on the Drexel Dragons throughout the game. Drexel was able to withstand the pressure in the first half, but William & Mary broke through in the second half. The result was a 2 – 0 CAA win for the Tribe at Vidas Field. The Dragons were forced to play defense which resulted in their inability to sustain offense.
“That’s one aspect of the game, but you expend a lot of energy when you defend,” said Drexel Coach Ray Goon. “We did make a good commitment to defend, but you have to make an equal effort in transition and in your attack to keep the ball. When you defend, you don’t have the ball. You have to defend and use a lot of energy.”
After a scoreless first half in which Drexel was out shot by an 8 – 2 margin, William & Mary scored just under nine minutes after halftime. The Tribe got deep into the offensive zone. Defender Clara Logsdon took a give and go pass from midfielder Nicole Baxter and put the ball on net. In the ensuing scramble the ball was deflected past Dragon goal keeper Kelsie Fye for an own-goal.
Drexel came back with a great opportunity just over two minutes later, but sophomore midfielder Kylie Strong let a shot go that went just high and over the crossbar. The Tribe returned to the attack. Fye made saves off shots by forward Sami Grasso, then later by Elysse Branton. Fye recorded 7 saves in the game.
William & Mary got the insurance goal by Grasso who found the top left corner in the 80th minute.
For the game the Tribe had a 20 – 4 edge in shots, 9 – 1 in shots on goal and a 6 – 3 advantage in corner kicks.
“It was a good fight, a good effort, but the effort has to match the tactical plan and I thought we were not up to that level,” Goon said.
William & Mary improves to 10 – 3 – 1 on the season and are 4 – 1 – 0 in conference holding the 4th spot in the standings. The Dragons fall to 7 – 8 for the season and 1 – 5 in conference play.
Drexel, who have been held scoreless in their last three games, is a team gaining game experience. The next three games are chances for the team to learn and gain more confidence.
“We are young because we are not battle-tested,” said Goon. “We have good players, but are not that experienced yet. We did well out of conference, but in conference you can’t let up.”
“You have to learn what it takes to be a CAA playoff team.”
The next lesson is Sunday with a game Elon who sit just ahead of Drexel in the CAA standings. The Dragons finish the season next weekend visiting Northeastern and Hofstra, the top two teams in the league.
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
Be the first to comment