By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

TACOMA, Wash. -- Tati Klenk (Sr., ATT, Truckee, CA/Tahoe Truckee HS) of Willamette University scored seven goals and teammate Lily Bachiochi (So., ATT, Henderson, NV/Coronado HS) provided five assists, as the Bearcats rolled past the University of Puget Sound 18-4 in a Northwest Conference women's lacrosse game on Wednesday, March 22. The Bearcats produced the first six goals of the game, led 10-1 at the end of the first quarter, and held a 13-3 margin at halftime.

Willamette upped its record to 7-3 on the season, including 5-3 in the NWC. The Loggers fell to 3-5 overall, 2-4 in the NW.

Klenk contributed six of her seven goals in the first half, including four in the first quarter. Three of her goals during the game were on free position shots. Bachiochi recorded all five of her assists in the first half. Klenk's seven goals tied her with four other Bearcats for second on Willamette's all-time single-game list. The Willamette record for goals in a game is nine, set by Anabel Ohsman ('21) at the University of Dallas on March 24, 2019.

For the season, Klenk leads the Bearcats with 33 goals, while Bachiochi tops the offensive chart with 25 assists and 47 total points.

"We came out with great energy from the beginning and did not let up," Willamette Head Women's Lacrosse Coach Sarah Lautenbach said. "Our defense was disciplined in what we had practiced, our attack moved the ball quickly and was always a threat, and we made the draw a priority. Overall, we were pleased with executing a complete game for 60 minutes."

Shea Richardson-Pepper (So., DEF/MID, San Diego, CA/Scripps Ranch HS) opened the scoring for Willamette less than two minutes into the game at 13:26. Klenk tallied the next four goals. She was assisted by Bachiochi on her first goal at 12:15, then scored a player-advantage goal at 10:42 while Maddie Hider served a yellow card penalty for the Loggers. Klenk tacked on an unassisted goal at the 5:22 mark, and added another goal assisted by Bachiochi at 4:27.

Maddie Garcia (Sr., MID, Encinitas, CA/San Dieguito Academy) increased WU's lead to 6-0 on a free position shot with 3:35 left in the first quarter before Michaela Chen tallied Puget Sound's first goal of the game just over a minute later with 2:25 on the clock. The Willamette offense continued to excel, adding four more goals in a 48-second span before the quarter ended. A player-advantage goal by Claire Kisielnicki (Fy., ATT, Manitou Springs, CO/Manitou Springs HS) started the four-goal outburst.

WU held a 3-2 edge in goal-scoring in the second quarter, with goals by Catie Mohr (Fy., D, Portland, OR/Wilson HS), Catie Kawamura (Sr., ATT, San Diego, CA/San Diego International Studies), and Richardson-Pepper. The goals for PS were scored by Maya Sheklow and Cat Schilli.

The 13-3 halftime lead for the Bearcats led to a running clock throughout the second half. Even so, the Bearcats outscored the Loggers 5-1 in the final two quarters.

In addition to Klenk's seven goals, Willamette ended the game with five players at two goals apiece. They were Garcia, Richardson-Pepper, Kisielnicki, Kawamura, and Bachiochi. Mohr scored one goal. For the Loggers, Schilli finished with one goal and one assist.

Willamette outshot Puget Sound, 27-16, including 20-8 in shots on goal. The Bearcats achieved a 16-8 edge in draw controls and an 18-11 advantage in ground balls. Kawamura provided six draw controls while Richardson-Pepper contributed five. The Bearcats were 17 for 18 on clears and went 5 for 7 on free position shots.

The Bearcats will take on Chapman University (Calif.) in a non-conference game on Saturday, March 25 at Sparks Field. Game time is scheduled for 11 a.m. (PDT).