By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

WALLA WALLA, Wash. -- Willamette University surged out to an 11-1 halftime lead on its way to a 16-7 win over Whitman College on Saturday, April 27. The Bearcats, who outscored the Blues 6-1 in the first quarter and 5-0 in the second quarter, improved to 12-3 on the season and to 9-2 in the Northwest Conference. Whitman slipped to 9-7 overall, 5-6 in the NWC.

Lily Bachiochi (Jr., ATT, Henderson, NV/Coronado HS) toppled Willamette's scoring chart with six goals and one assist. She is now Willamette's career goal-scoring leader with 144 goals after entering the game tied at 138 with Maddie Garcia (2020-23).

Claire Kisielnicki (So., ATT, Manitou Springs, CO/Manitou Springs HS) and Brooklynn Pearl (So., MID, Eugene, OR/Willamette HS) each scored three goals for the Bearcats. Willamette has clinched at least a tie for second place in the NWC regular season standings and can claim second place outright with a win at Whitworth University (8-3 in the NWC) on Sunday, April 28. Game time in Spokane, Oregon, is set for 1 p.m. PDT.

George Fox University (11-0), Willamette (9-2), Whitworth (8-3), and Whitman (5-6) have clinched the four spots in the 2024 NWC Women's Lacrosse Tournament. GFU will host the NWC Tournament on Saturday, May 4 and Sunday, May 5.

While Bachiochi, Kiselnicki, and Pearl combined for 12 of Willamette's 16 goals against the Blues, four other Bearcats also contributed to the scoring. Cedric Shaw (Fy., MID, Jamul, CA/Valhalla HS) earned one goal and one assist, while Kendyl Jennings (Sr., MID, Keizer, OR/McNary HS), Alyssa Molisee (Fy., MID/ATT, Henderson, NV/Nevada State HS), and Shea Richardson-Pepper (Jr., DEF/MID, San Diego, CA/Scripps Ranch HS).

The defensive played well, too, as the Bearcats caused 15 of Whitman's 22 turnovers. Molisee led Willamette with three caused turnovers. Molisee and Pearl each registered four ground balls, while Shaw and Brielle Moore (Fy., D, San Diego, CA/Valhalla HS) each contributed three. Shaw also provided nine draw controls.

Willamette scored the game's first two goals on shots by Richardson-Pepper at 10:59 and by Bachiochi at 9:14 in the first quarter. Bachiochi also assisted on the goal by Richardson-Pepper. Madeleine Sherry pulled Whitman within 2-1 on a goal at 8:34, but the Bearcats answered just 33 seconds later when Pearl hit the net at 8:01.

The Bearcats soon added two goals in 13 seconds, as Pearl scored again at 6:47 and Shaw won the ensuing draw and scored at 6:34, giving Willamette a 5-1 lead. Bachiochi increased the lead to 6-1 when she scored with 19 seconds left in the first quarter on a free-position shot.

Bachiochi tacked on another goal from a free-position effort with 12:42 remaining in the second quarter. Kisielnicki shot the ball into the goal at 11:59 and Jennings quickly added a goal at 11:10 for a 9-1 advantage. Kisielnicki scored again at 8:54 and Pearl earned the final goal of the half at the 5:00 mark.

Whitman outscored the Bearcats 4-2 in the third quarter, but two goals by Bachiochi during the 15-minutes meant that the Blues never got closer than eight goals. Willamette held a 13-5 margin at the start of the fourth quarter. Molisee scored with 9:56 left in the game. Kisielnicki and Bachiochi also scored once for the Bearcats in the fourth quarter.

During the game, Sherry scored four goals and one assist for the Blues. Gracie Maulik tallied two goals for Whitman and Issy Eggerling scored once. Renn Novak recorded eight saves for Whitman. Teagan Huff topped the Blues with four draw controls.

Willamette goalkeeper Olivia Austin (Fy., GK, San Diego, CA/La Jolla HS) made two saves while moving her record in the nets to 12-3. The Bearcats achieved a 32-22 edge in total shots and a 24-10 advantage in shots on goal. WU also was credited with a 22-7 lead in ground balls, while each team claimed 13 draw controls.