Willamette Hits Road for Games Against Pacific and Pacific Lutheran

By Mark Colachico, Interim Assistant Athletics Communications Director

SALEM, ORE. -- The Willamette University womens soccer team will be away from the lovely confines of Sparks Field this weekend for a mini two-game Northwest Conference road trip against Pacific University in Forest Grove and Pacific Lutheran University in Parkland, Washington on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 11 and 12.

Both games are slated to kick off at 12:00 p.m. (PDT) at their respective sites.

Last weekend, the Bearcats kicked off the home portion of their Northwest Conference schedule against George Fox University and rival Linfield College.

On Saturday, Willamette battled George Fox to a scoreless tie in double overtime behind Emily Sewall's (So., GK, Petaluma, CA/Casa Grande HS) team-high four saves for the Bearcats. Emmy Manset (Fr., F, Ventura, CA/Foothill Technology HS) tallied a game-high 10 shots with six being on-target, while Jill Phillips (Jr., MF/GK, Fairbanks, AK/West Valley HS) had Willamette's best scoring chance when she hit the cross bar on a shot from 18 yards in the 41st minute.

Twenty-four hours later, Willamette hosted rival Linfield and hung with the Wildcats for the opening 45 minutes before falling 2-0 to close out the weekend. The Bearcats registered three shots in the first half and four in the second half, but Linfield tallied a combined 17 shots in the game that included 11 in the second half. Linfield goals at 31:04 and 72:11 were all the scoring in the game, as Sewall tallied a game-high five saves for the Bearcats.

So far this season, Phillips leads the team in all three offensive categories that includes nine points, three goals, and three assists. Veronica Ewers (Jr., MF, Moscow, ID/Moscow HS) ranks second on the team in goals with two, while Kelsey Walker (Fr., MF, Westerville, OH/Westerville North HS) has handed out a pair of assists to sit behind Phillips. Manset has unleashed 24 shots and has put 15 of her shots (62.5%) on frame this year to lead the Bearcats in both categories. Sewall has stood between the pipes for all 920 minutes so far this season and registered 39 saves, which ranks fourth in the Northwest Conference.

Pacific enters Saturday's game with an overall record of 4-5-1 and 1-4-1 in NWC games. The Boxers are riding a two-game losing streak and have allowed 14 goals so far this season in conference play.

Kara Lankey leads Pacific with four goals and eight points this year, while four other Boxers - McKenna Davidson, Kathleen McIntyre, Ashley Park-Hunt, and Kamryn Plechot - have all scored two goals this season. Davidson and Lucy Almao have handed out a team-high three assists each for Pacific, while Kristina Morris leads the Boxer goalkeepers in goals against average (GAA) at 0.87 to rank fifth in the NWC.

Pacific Lutheran enters this weekend's games sitting at the top of the conference with an overall record of 7-2-1 and 5-1-0 in league games. The Lutes have won five straight games, while allowing only two goals so far this season in NWC action.

Lauren Larson leads PLU with six goals and 14 points, while Jamie Hoffman and Emily Hanna have handed out a team-best three assists each. Kaylie Rozell is second on the team in goals with three, while three other Lutes - Machaela Graddy, Hoffman, and Kelly White - have each scored two goals this season. Takara Mitsui has allowed only three goals in nearly 913 minutes this year for Pacific Lutheran, as she ranks first in the conference in GAA at 0.30.

Following this weekend's game, Willamette returns home for a mid-week Northwest Conference game on Wednesday, Oct. 15, against Lewis & Clark College beginning at 7:00 p.m. (PDT) on Sparks Field.