TACOMA, Wash. - The Pacific Lutheran University women's soccer team is preparing for its last homestand of the season. Lewis & Clark College comes to town on Saturday, Pacific University visits East Field on Sunday for Senior Day and the Lutes take on cross town rival University of Puget Sound for a Halloween showdown on Wednesday.

The Lutes head into the final home weekend with an overall record of 9-3-4 and a Northwest Conference record of 8-2-2. After a strong performance last weekend, defeating George Fox University 1-0 and tying Linfield College 1-1, the Lutes moved up to second place in the conference with a total of 26 points on the year (3 points for win, 1 point for tie). University of Puget Sound occupies the top spot in the conference with 29 points.

Last weekend, senior Natalie Robinson earned NWC Defender of the Week, playing all 200 minutes in goal and yielding only one goal. Robinson has occupied the goal for nine shutouts this season and has played every minute of every game over the last two seasons. 

"As a team we want to continue to challenge playing against ourselves and playing to our PLU standard. We want to get better every opportunity we have, and that is with the future in the back of our minds but also more with our focus on what's in front of us first. Which is this week of training and then the games this weekend."

Robinson gave us insight on how the Lutes are staying prepared both mentally and physically during the closing stretch of the regular season,

"At this point in the season, less really is more to an extent. Early during the season is when you have to push yourself physically, to challenge your body and be at your best fitness wise. But this late in the season your body builds up fatigue, as well as your mind. It's really about making sure that you prioritize recovery and your training opportunities. When you are in training, your number of reps might be lower than earlier in the season but what has helped me is getting my mind right to make sure those reps are solid. You have to give your best towards however many reps you get and trust that what you're getting is what you need and trust your coaches in that process. Being around teammates who make practices and film and weights fun definitely helps mentally because it gets you excited to go out and play."

As the regular season winds down, it's often a reflective time for seniors on the team. Robinson reflects on her time as a Lute,

"My last four years playing have not gone how my high school senior self would have initially thought. My freshmen and sophomore year I didn't play. My role on the team was to challenge my teammates in practice. Through that I developed the skills I needed to be disciplined with the small things and grow mentally to have a positive attitude towards being a member of a team and not just an individual. As a senior I went into this year with a different attitude. My role had once again shifted to less about me and more about challenging my teammates. There's times in training when I realize that the other goalkeepers on our team can do just the same things I can if not better. So I focused a lot on making them better, giving better services in training, harder services. Because that's the thing, there's always someone behind you, and at the end of the season as a senior you leave your jersey and, as a goalkeeper your box, with the player you became. And the funny thing is I already know that when I leave there are people behind me who will already make it much better."

The Lutes look to finish up their regular season on a high note. A strong performance to close out this homestand can put the Lutes on track to winning their third straight NWC title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. 

Senior Salute: Sunday's game will be Senior Day with the Lutes' honoring this years senior class: Natalie Robinson, Jamie Saito, Bianca Lindberg, Kate Peterson, Rachel Ross, Liz Griffith, Amber Richards, and Katie Coronado. The 2018 seniors have compiled a 57-10-12 record on the pitch and a 45-7-8 mark in NWC play, winning two conference titles. The senior class boasts a 30-2-5 record at East Field and has been responsible for 55 shutouts over the past four seasons. 

Socktober: The PLU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is collecting socks at all home events throughout the month of October. Donated socks will be sent to the Tacoma Rescue Mission in time for the holidays. 

Oct. 27: PLU vs. Lewis & Clark at East Field (12 p.m.)

Series History: The Lutes and Pioneers have met 49 times with PLU enjoying a 40-4-5 edge in the all-time series. The Lutes won the first meeting of the season 2-0 back on Sept. 29 in Portland with Ellie Johnson scoring both goals in a four-minute stretch to secure the win.

About the Pioneers: Lewis & Clark (3-11-2, 1-10-1 NWC) defeated George Fox University 1-0 on Sept. 26 but has been winless since (0-6-1), getting outscored 15-1 over that seven game slump.
Ella Viesturs leads the Pios in both goals (three) and points (eight) while Megan Sawyer has seen the most time in goal, making 52 saves on the season with a 1.52 goals against average.

Oct. 28: PLU vs. Pacific at East Field (12 p.m.)

Series History: Pacific Lutheran holds a 44-16-10 advantage in the all-time series, including winning the last five matches against the Boxers. Last meeting Ellie Johnson scored two goals a little over 90 seconds apart as PLU downed host Pacific 3-1 back on Sept. 30.

About the Boxers: Pacific (2-13-1, 2-9-1 NWC) heads into the weekend looking to snap a two-game skid. The Boxers downed Lewis & Clark 2-0 back on Oct. 14 before were victims of 1-0 and 5-2 scorelines last weekend against visiting Whitman College and Whitworth University.

Five of Pacific's 11 goals have come off the boot of Emily Thompson who also has a team-best two assists. Saya Brown has logged a majority of time in goal, netting 71 saves on the season with a 1.93 goals against average.