By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- Miranda Piros (Fr., MID, Newberg, OR/Newberg HS) put in seven goals and Anabel Ohsman (So., ATT, Shohomish, WA/Glacier Peak HS) scored six times, as Willamette University defeated Pacific University, 17-11, on Saturday, March 30 at Sparks Field. The Bearcats, in their first season of competition, never trailed during the game and recorded their first Northwest Conference win. WU scored the game's first six goals and owned a 9-4 lead at halftime.
Willamette improved to 3-5 on the season and to 1-2 in the NWC. The Boxers fell to 2-2 overall, 1-1 in the NWC.
Piros finished just two goals short of Willamette's single-game, goal-scoring record of nine, set by Ohsman against University of Dallas on March 24. Ohsman is Willamette's leading scorer for the season with 25 goals and 28 total points. She is followed by Piros with 17 goals and 19 points. As a team, the Bearcats nearly reached their single-game scoring record, set in the 18-14 win at Dallas.
"We did a good job hustling to come up with the 50/50 balls which was a big part of our success," Willamette Head Coach Sarah Lautenbach said. "Emma Canchola was instrumental, coming up with 10 ground balls, seven draw controls, and six caused turnovers."
The Bearcats dominated the early portion of the game, scoring four times in the first 6:08 and building a 6-0 lead with 16:55 left in the half. During the run, Willamette won all seven draw controls, including the draw following the sixth goal. Overall, the Bearcats gained possession on each of the first 10 draws and held an 11-3 advantage in draws at halftime.
Ohsman scored the first goal at 28:16 and Laura Kelly (Fr., ATT/MID, Mountain View, CA/Mountain View HS) tacked on a goal 28 seconds later. Piros tallied her first goal of the game at 24:44 for a 3-0 lead.
Emma Canchola (Fr., DEF, Oregon City OR/Oregon City HS) scored the fourth goal 23:52 after intercepting a pass and going straight toward the goal. It was the first goal of the season for the standout defender. Canchola also won five draw controls in the first half. She finished the game with seven draw controls, 10 ground balls and six caused turnovers.
Goals by Ohsman completed the opening run and gave her a hat trick in just over 13 minutes. She has scored three or more goals in the same game four times and has scored at least one goal in seven of Willamette's eight game.
Roya Tahamassebi scored the Boxers' first goal of the afternoon with 12:33 remaining in the half. She also shot into the net at 10:03 to reduce the Bearcats' lead to 6-2. Willamette added three goals and Paicific tacked on two before halftime. At the break, Ohsman had five goals and Piros had two goals for WU. Tahamassebi had three goals for Pacific.
Victoria Glidden (Fr., MID/DEF, Dover, NH/Phillips Exeter Academy) of Willamette scored the first of her two goals just 32 seconds into the second half for a 10-4 advantage. Piros scored less than a minute later at 28:39, and Ohsman tacked on a goal at 25:18, as the Bearcats extended their advantage to 12-4.
Three consecutive goals on free position shots by the Boxers reduced WU's margin to 12-7. The goals were scored by Vivian Mai at 24:57, Rebecca Jimenez-Aleman at 24:57 and Tahamassebi at 23:18. A bit later, Pacific pulled within 13-9 on a goal by Alexa Erickson at 17:26, completing a 5-1 run.
The Bearcats regained control of the game with the next three goals for a 16-9 lead, starting with a goal by Piros at 16:00 and ending with a goal by Piros at 10:38. In between, Glidden produced her second goal of the half at 12:38. Willamette's defense also responded to the run. After moving within four goals, the Boxers were kept off the scoreboard by the Bearcats for more than 12 minutes.
The Bearcats outshot the Boxers 34-19 overall and 31-15 in shots on goal. Willamette ended the game with an 19-11 edge in draw controls and a 24-14 margin in ground balls. The Bearcats converted 10 of 17 clears, while limiting Pacific to just seven clears on 23 attempts.
In addition to Canchola's exceptional numbers on defense, the Bearcats also received solid play from Kelly and Alayna Newland (So., ATT, Everett, WA/Archbishop Murphy HS). Kelly latched onto four ground balls and caused three turnovers. She also scored two goals. Newland recorded five draw controls and forced two turnovers.
Willamette goalkeeper Kara Phillips (Sr., GK, Kirkland, WA/Lake Washington HS) registered four saves. Madyson Ivey of Pacific accumulated 14 saves in goal. Tahamassebi scored four goals for the Boxers.
The Bearcats will remain at home to take on NWC rival Linfield College on Sunday, March 31. Game time is set for 1 p.m. (PDT).
Big Moment of the Game for Willamette
Defender Emma Canchola intercepted a pass between the Boxers'
defensive zone and midfield, took the ball toward the goal, and shot
into the net with 23:52 remaining in the first half to give Willamette
a 4-0 lead. That was officially the Big Moment, but she did so much
more during the game. She earned seven draw controls, forced six
turnovers, and picked up 10 ground balls.