WILLIAMSBURG — As William & Mary gets ready for the 2025 hockey season, WYDaily caught up with some of the Tribe’s players and coaches ahead of Friday night’s face-off.
Tribe Hockey earned a 13-2 regular-season record in 2024. During the postseason, the team found more success and earned its second straight Atlantic Coast Collegiate Hockey League championship.
Austin Oswald, who previously served as assistant coach for the Tribe over the past three seasons, enters his first season as head coach.
“It’s very exciting. A few years ago, when I joined this program, I didn’t think that this was even in the cards. It’s also humbling because I know that this wasn’t just a Coach Barger decision, it came from a number of boosters, alumni, and the players themselves. It has been a humbling experience and I’m very excited to prove those who put me in this position right,” Oswald said.
In 2025, the team has moved up from Division Three to now compete in the ACCHL M2A Division.
“We want to prove to everybody that we belong at this level now. We got to a point in division three that it wasn’t as challenging as we hoped and moving up this year, I believe we’re going to be able to challenge ourselves and be able to show the league that we belong,” Oswald said.
The team plays home games at Chilled Ponds Yorktown.
Ahead of the 2025 campaign, Oswald has been speaking with the team about the importance of building on the success of past seasons.
“I’ve been really sticking to the idea of innovation and building on the systems and the foundation that Coach Barger has laid down. We want to innovate and try new things and be on the cutting edge of hockey within this new division,” Oswald said.
Senior Bronson Dubey was elected by his teammates to be one of the team captains in 2025.
“It’s important to me. I know the time and effort that I’ve put into the program, and I’m glad that it can be recognized. At the end of the day, it’s not the most important thing. If you’re on the bench, you can see who the leaders on the ice are, and those people are always going to be the ones you look up to. I’m glad that the team thinks that of me, and I’m happy to be that role model for the new guys coming in that need to experience first hand what Tribe Hockey is about and I’m glad that I can be that representative for the team on the ice,” Dubey shared.
Kicking off the season is a highly coveted matchup against cross-town rival Christopher Newport University. The matchup is a game that Dubey is looking forward to.
“Last season, I went in for a hit. The kid was a little bit bigger than me, which has never really been an obstacle for me. I took the hit kind of funny, fell down and felt like I got the breath knocked out of me. From there, things kind of just spiraled down. I left in an ambulance, going to the hospital, stayed the night, and then had surgery the next day to remove my ruptured spleen,” Dubey explained.
For the remainder of the 2024 season, Dubey remained on the bench.
“Personally, I felt like I could make a comeback. I don’t know that it would have benefited the team any because at that point I would have been not exercising for four months. I was disappointed in not being able to play but still glad that I could help out the team from the bench,” Dubey said.
Oswald encourages the greater Williamsburg community to support the team by heading to a game.
“If people come out and watch us, whether they are hockey fans or not, I think they are going to find a team that is dedicated to themselves, the sport, and to each other. Not only will you get to watch high-level hockey in the area, they will find a sense of pride that the players on the ice and off the ice have,” Oswald said.
Tribe hockey will open the season at home against Christopher Newport University at Chilled Ponds Yorktown at 9:30 p.m. on Sept. 19.
For more information on Tribe hockey, visit instagram.com/tribehockey.
2025 Tribe Hockey Schedule
Sept. 19 — home vs. Christopher Newport University
Sept. 20 — away vs. Christopher Newport University
Sept. 26 — home vs. James Madison University
Sept. 27 — home vs. James Madison University
Oct. 4 — home vs. Virginia Tech
Oct. 24 — away vs. Old Dominion University
Oct. 25 — away vs. Old Dominion University
Nov. 7 — away vs. Virginia Tech
Nov. 8 — away vs. Virginia Tech
Nov. 21 — home vs. George Mason University
Nov. 22 — home vs. University of Virginia
Jan. 16, 2026 — away vs. James Madison University
Jan. 23, 2026 — away vs. University of Richmond
Jan. 24, 2026 — away vs. University of Richmond
Jan. 30, 2026 — away vs. Catholic University
Jan. 31, 2026 — away vs. University of Maryland
Feb. 6, 2026 — home vs. Catholic University
Feb. 7, 2026 — home vs. University of Maryland