Tigers to return home for a match against William and Mary after three-game road trip

Following an impressive late-game victory in Philadelphia versus St. Joseph’s last week, the women’s soccer team is preparing to return from its three-game road trip for a home contest against William and Mary (3-1-2 overall, 0-0 CAA) Sunday afternoon. Princeton (3-1-1 overall, 0-0 Ivy League), which has not played at home in two weeks, will look to build on its solid early-season play in preparation for the beginning of Ivy League soccer on Sept. 28th when the Tigers will host Yale.

Princeton returns from the three-game road trip with a win, a loss and a tie. The Tigers tied Seton Hall 0-0 in a closely contested overtime match on Sept. 13 and fell to Rutgers 5-1 two days later. Tuesday, a late-game goal scored by freshman forward Tyler Lussi lifted Princeton to victory over St. Joseph’s in the 83rd minute of that contest, despite a light malfunction delay that stalled the action for 45 minutes midway through the second half.

“We had three road games in five days, and as you can imagine, we are facing teams who are in their eighth and ninth game[s],” head coach Julie Shackford said of the road trip. “So we are working hard to get game fitness and coordinate everything on the field as well.”

Now, the Tigers will prepare to take on William and Mary at Roberts Stadium on Sunday afternoon. In the all-time series between the two squads, the Tribe holds a 5-1 advantage. The last time the teams met, in September 2011, William and Mary defeated Princeton 2-0 after breaking a long-standing tie with goals in quick succession in the 65th and 73rd minutes. This season, the Tribe rolls into Princeton with momentum. William and Mary has not lost in five consecutive matches and last fell at Georgetown in late August. Since that game, the Tribe has won three matches and tied two, most recently defeating Radford 2-1 in overtime on Tuesday. William and Mary will also square off against Penn at home on Friday before making the trip to Princeton.

Although Shackford is impressed with her team’s play so far this season, she is excited to see continued improvement versus William and Mary, her alma mater, this weekend.

“I give our players a lot of credit for stepping up in the last 30 minutes of the game,” Shackford said. “We look forward to hosting William and Mary this weekend. It will be a great challenge against a historically strong program.”