By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- After winning its first-ever game in 2019, playing to a 2-1 record during a shortened season due to COVID-19 in 2020, and earning an 8-3 record and a tie for second place in the Northwest Conference in 2021, the Willamette University women's lacrosse team has experienced quite a bit of success in a short time. The Bearcats look to continue that success during the 2022 season.
Seven Bearcats return who received All-Northwest Conference recognition last spring. Overall, Willamette has 10 returning players.
Maddie Garcia (Jr., MID, Encinitas, CA/San Dieguito Academy) was named Second Team All-West Region after earning First Team All-NWC honors last season. She led the Bearcats with 41 goals to rank fourth in the NWC and recorded 42 total points. She took 58 shots and placed 52 of those shots on target. She scored six goals in three games while recording three or more goals nine times. She was 12 of 19 on free-position shots. Garcia enters this season with 47 goals and 48 points in her career. Her career totals also include 20 draw controls and 20 ground balls.
Joining Garcia as returning First Team All-NWC selections are Catie Kawamura (Jr., ATT, San Diego, CA/San Diego International Studies) and Emma Canchola (Sr., DEF, Oregon City OR/Oregon City HS).
Kawamura topped Willamette's scoring chart with 47 total points. She ranked second for the Bearcats with 31 goals and tied for first on the team with 16 assists. In the NWC, she was fourth in assists and finished sixth in goals and total points. Kawamura took 53 shots and placed 42 shots on goal. She led WU with 48 draw controls to rank fourth in the NWC.
Canchola was selected First Team All-NWC for the second time after also receiving the honor in 2019. She set Willamette's single-season record for ground balls with 66 in 2019 and added 39 ground balls in 2021. She has accumulated a school record 109 ground balls during her career to go along with 54 draw controls and 49 caused turnovers. She forced 13 turnovers last season.
Second Team All-NWC picks returning for the Bearcats are junior defender Kiana Gottschalk (Bend, OR/Bend HS), junior goalkeeper Shelby Sawyer (Jr., GK, Marysville, WA/Bio Med Academy), and sophomore midfielder Analise Wilson (So., MID, Temecula, CA/Chaparral HS).
Last year, Gottschalk was a steady defender for Willamette while starting all 11 games. She achieved 20 ground balls and forced opponents into seven turnovers. She read the game well and provided WU with excellent positioning. She attained three ground balls in three games. She missed the Bearcats' COVID-19 shortened season in 2020 due to an injury.
Sawyer was in goal for 446 minutes last spring and recorded a 9.55 goals against average. She contributed 88 saves and 14 ground balls. Sawyer and the WU defense limited opponents to fewer than 10 goals five times. In her career, she has registered 105 saves to go along with 16 ground balls.
As a first-year player last season, Wilson was a standout for the Bearcats. She led Willamette with 20 caused turnovers and ranked second with 46 draw controls. She was was second on the team with 37 ground balls. In addition, Wilson scored 18 goals and earned one assist. She grabbed eight ground balls against the University of Puget Sound on May 1. She recorded a career-high seven draw controls against Whitworth University on April 11.
Returning this spring after receiving Honorable Mention All-NWC status last year is Laura Kelly (Sr., ATT, Mountain View, CA/Mountain View HS). In 2021, Kelly scored 14 goals and produced seven assists, as she accumulated 21 total points. She registered 21 total shots and 19 shots on target. She was credited with nine ground balls and forced five turnovers. During her career at WU, Kelly has produced 26 goals and 12 assists, while playing in all 30 games with 27 starts. She scored five goals against Whitworth on April 11, 2021.
Willamette Head Women's Lacrosse Coach Sarah Lautenbach was chosen NWC Coach of the Year last season. She led the Bearcats to an 8-3 overall record and a tie for second place in the NWC standings at 7-3. She has been the Bearcats' head coach since the team's first-ever game in 2019. She has a career record at WU of 16-14, including 14-10 in the NWC.
"We have our top two goal scorers returning (Garcia and Kawamura), we have our top draw control specialists (Kawamura and Wilson) returning, and we have our top caused turnover (Wilson) and ground ball (Canchola) playmakers returning," Lautenbach said. "Overall, we have more speed and experience going into this season. We have improved on our endurance ad lacrosse IQ as a squad from last year, and we look to implement new sets and systems that will make us even more dynamic on both ends of the field."
Willamette's list of returning players also includes Tati Klenk (Jr., ATT, Truckee, CA/Tahoe Truckee HS), Kendyl Jennings (So., MID, Keizer, OR/McNary HS), and Jade Kampen (So., MID, Eugene, OR/South Eugene HS). Klenk tallied 10 goals and one assist in 2021 and was a key player off the bench. She will move into a starting role this year. Jennings started all 11 games as a first-year player last spring and recorded 15 ground balls to go along with four goals scored. Kampen competed in nine games and provided eight ground balls.
Although most of the roster is filled with players who have competed at Willamette for at least one season, the team does have a couple of talented newcomers in Shea Richardson-Pepper (Fy., D/M, San Diego, CA/Scripps Ranch HS) and Lily Bachiochi (Fy., ATT, Henderson, NV/Coronado HS).
"We have two strong and experienced first-year additions who will be big contributors right away," Lautenbach explained. "Shea has the ability to read plays with great defensive anticipation and an exceptional ball-tracking ability to come up with 50/50 balls. She also will be a big presence in our midfield transition. Lily has already proven to mesh with our attacking unit, playing multiple roles as a playmaker, and finishing in tight spaces. She brings a confident and poised style of play to our attack."
The Bearcats are scheduled to play 17 games this season. Willamette will play 12 games in the Northwest Conference, starting with a home game against Whitworth on Saturday, March 5 at 1 p.m. (PST). Other home opponents for the Bearcats in NWC action are Whitman College on March 6, Linfield University on March 13, George Fox University on April 16, Pacific University on April 20, and Puget Sound on April 24.
