Box Score Contact: Mark Albanese, Director of Sports Communication
TACOMA, Wash. - The 17th-ranked Pacific Lutheran University women's soccer team made the most of its first home game in nearly a month, dismantling Northwest Conference rival George Fox University 3-0 on a windy Saturday at East Field.
Machaela Graddy got things started for the Lutes (9-0-3, 6-0-2 NWC), finding the back of the net in the 14th minute off an assist from Kaylie Rozell. Homestanding PLU enjoyed a 1-0 lead at the halftime intermission, dominating possession during the opening 45 minutes and owning a 5-0 edge in shots.
Kelsey Hathaway doubled PLU's advantage just over three minutes into the second half, beating the Bruin keeper after collecting a rebound from an initial shot from Graddy. Lauren Larson further padded the Pacific Lutheran lead with a goal in the 89th minute with Sarah Burns collecting the assist.
"It was good for us to get an earlier goal but felt like we didn't have enough shots at the half. We asked the team to up that level and urgency in the second half to get more chances on goal and we did that," said Head Coach Seth Spidahl.
"The second half against the wind we were on top of the game. Very proud of the team to finally get that third goal. We talked about going from good to great today and certainly we didn't take that step but we got a little closer to be where we want to be."
Pacific Lutheran held a 19-5 edge in shots, including an 8-4 advantage in shots on target, remaining atop the conference standings with the emphatic victory.
Takara Mitsui nabbed four saves in the second half, collecting her 10th clean sheet of the season as the PLU defense has now logged 490 consecutive minutes without yielding a goal, a streak stretching across six games. Mitsui's counterpart, George Fox's (2-6-3, 2-3-2 NWC) Morgan Bars, collected five saves and yielded three scores in 90 minutes of work.
"It was awesome that a lot of people had chances to play today. I thought Amber Richards had a great debut and Sarah Burns came on and did well. Krista Morford had her first start and did well and Takara made a great save in the second half at a crucial moment."
The Lutes return to the pitch next Saturday, hitting the road to face Whitworth University at 12 p.m.
