BEREA, Ohio — Liv Olson came through in the clutch when it mattered most on Saturday, scoring a goal in the 86th minute as the nine-time defending Northwest Conference Champion Pacific Lutheran University women's soccer team stung host Baldwin Wallace University 1-0 at George Finnie Stadium.
"Big step up and improvement, we're really proud of the players performance today. We changed some things up tactically and with back-to-back games there's not a lot of time to practice it, but they really took in the information, are coachable, and have a teachable spirit. They went out and played really good," said Head Coach Sethb Spidahl.
PLU (1-1) outshot the host Yellow Jackets (2-1) by a two-to-one margin on the night but it wasn't until the 86th minute for the visiting Lutes to break through as
Liv Olson tallied her first goal of the year off a pass from
Marie Piho.Â
The Lutes' stingy defense took it from there, allowing only one shot the rest of the game to pick up the first clean sheet of the 2026 campaign.
PLU outshot Baldwin Wallace 20-10, including an 8-4 discrepancy in shots on frame. The Lutes 20 shots was a true team effort with 11 total players ripping off a shot with
Jaden Saucelo and
Keara Saks two of the main instigators, each collecting two shots on frame.
"We got 20 shots and eight corners and had some good looks on goal. I felt like we deserved to win the game and was good to get that late goal by Liv. She's picking up where she left off.Â
Good performances up front from
Elayna Blodgett and
Taylor Thomas, a couple of young players, which was exciting to see.
Marie Piho started her first game as a sophomore so we had some new starters today but they made a good impact. It was a good tough team win. We still have a ton to work on but very proud of how the team found a way to get a win."
Mia Speir collected her first clean sheet of her collegiate career, making four saves over the 90-minute contest. Mackenzie Butcher nearly escaped unblemished for B-W, ending the night with seven saves while yielding the game's lone goal.
"Now we come home and have a short week to play another set of really good teams."
PLU is back on the pitch on Thursday, opening a four-game homestand by welcoming Wheaton College to East Field. Kickoff is slated for 4:30 p.m.
