TACOMA, Wash. – Trailing George Fox University 1-0 late in the second half at East Field on Saturday, the Pacific Lutheran University women's soccer cranked up the intensity to force overtime and freshman
Meghan Michels scored her second goal in 12 minutes to lift the Lutes to a 2-1 victory. The win, coupled with a loss by the University of Puget Sound, allowed PLU to clinch its fourth straight Northwest Conference Championship.
The Lutes (15-1-1, 13-0-0 NWC) allowed just their second goal in conference play and the fourth goal of the season in the first half. The Bruins' Brittany Bravo hit the crossbar with a shot in the 28
th minute and the ball bounced directly to Madison Burch, who deflected it past PLU keeper
Ashton Huppert. It was the first goal of the year allowed by Huppert in a span of 685 minutes. The junior made four saves on the day to keep PLU within striking distance and earn her seventh victory of the season.
After a sluggish first half, the Lutes flipped a switch in the second 45 minutes. PLU ripped 11 shots in the second half, none bigger than Michels' game-tying goal in the 87
th minute. The freshman kept the pressure on with multiple drives deep into the Bruin defense before finally ending the game with just 30 seconds left in the first overtime. They were the 10
th and 11
th goals of the year for Michels, which leads the Northwest Conference.
With today's victory, the Lutes extended their school-record winning streak to 14 matches. PLU has also outscored NWC opponents by an astounding 31-2 margin. The Lutes have now earned the NWC's automatic qualification to the NCAA Tournament and will learn where they are headed during the NCAA Selection Show on Monday, November 11 at 10:00 a.m.
PLU has two more home matches before the regular season closes. The Lutes will welcome Willamette University tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. before hosting archrival UPS on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.
