The football team handled Rhode Island in every facet of the game on its way to a 24-6 victory Saturday. Despite the upcoming game with defending national champion Mass-achu-setts looming on the horizon, the Tribe avoided overlooking the Rams.

"A team like this could have been very dangerous," head coach Jimmye Laycock told the Tribe football radio network. "We did what we had to do to get a win."



Basketball teams tip off new season

After last year's late-season losing streak and a preseason that saw one of its top recruits sidelined for the year, the men's basketball team tried to make a fresh start Mon-day night in the first of two preseason games. The result was an 85-71 win over the Nantucket Nectar's Naturals in front of a sparse, yet enthusiastic, crowd at W&M Hall.



New coach implements up-tempo offense

With three players out for the season and a new head coach at the helm, the women's basketball team is out to prove itself this year. Last season, the Tribe posted 15 wins and had a respectable 8-8 conference record.



Tribe fall to JMU in semis

Three scoring strikes put the Green and Gold into the semifinal game of the CAA field hockey tournament in Harrisonburg last weekend, and then three strikes punched them out. The third-seeded Tribe crushed Virginia Commonwealth 3-0 Friday to advance to the conference semifinals for the third straight year but ended up on the other end of a 3-0 score Saturday in a loss to second-seeded James Madison.



Squad wilts under pressure from conference opponents

A streak of four consecutive victories came to an end for the volleyball team last weekend, as the squad dropped matches to two of the CAA's top three teams. The Tribe (15-13, 6-6 CAA) fell to fourth place in the conference with their second losses of the season to both American and George Mason.



Swimmers get first wins

By pulling ahead of Davidson College Saturday, the men's and women's swimming teams recorded their first wins under first-year head coach Dan Langan. Both teams then dropped their matchups with East Carolina the following day. The women managed to rebound with a win over Richmond Wednesday.



Defending national champions challenge Tribe in home finale

Whenever you face the defending national champions, as the Tribe will Saturday, you get a little pumped up. Adding to the excitement, this game will be the last home contest for 12 seniors. Even more fuel to the fire, the loser of the game will be knocked from a possible playoff berth.



Arthur lasts until finals

Not surprisingly, a Tribe women's tennis player reached the final of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association this past weekend, giving the program four finals in the past six years.

The surprise star of the weekend was neither defending champion Carolijn van Rossum, a senior, nor W&M Invitational champion and second seed Delphine Troch, a sophomore. It was sophomore Jessyca Arthur.



Fearless Picks: On heels of greatness

Variety is the spice of life - or so the saying goes. Those who have followed the women's soccer team's postseason play in the last four years, however, have grown accustomed to the same scenario over and over. For three out of the last four years, the women's soccer team has played the University of North Carolina in the first or second round of the NCAA tournament.