SAN DIEGO – The Aztec lacrosse team scored their first PAC-12 Conference victory with a 13-12 win over the Oregon Ducks. Sara Toner led the team with five points from four goals and one assist.
The Aztecs (2-12, 1-4) started the match slow, down 6-2 to the Ducks (7-5, 1-4) after the first quarter, but started to pick it up in the second quarter, out-scoring Oregon 4-2, including a behind the back goal by Toner, assisted by Brooklyne Waddell, with 24 seconds left in the half. Things only improved from there as the Aztecs held the Ducks to only one goal in the third quarter, scoring four and putting the Aztecs up by one as the game entered the last 15 minutes. The final quarter was back and forth with the Ducks not letting up, but with 3:42 left, Morgan Delwiche scored her first goal of the game, and her first career game winning goal. The Aztecs held off the Ducks all the way to the final-second save by Avery Dyer, securing their first conference victory. The Ducks out-shot the Aztecs 30-27 and 23-21 in shots on goal. SDSU was 4-10 in extra-man opportunities, while Oregon was 2-5.
Toner led the team with five points from four goals and one assist. Emma Betts and Nikki Seven had three points each, Delwiche and Waddell had two points each, and Frankie Garcia, Jenna McDermott, and Tatum Neach each scored once. Mia Kohn and Kate Christos led the Aztecs with five draw controls each. Katie Wozencroft led the team with two caused turnovers. Goalkeeper Dyer had nine saves and six goals allowed on 19 shots faced in 45 minutes played.
Morgan McCarthy led the Ducks with three goals. The only assist for the Ducks came from Riley Taylor. Anna Simmons led the team with three ground balls. Simmons and Rachel Pallo had three draw controls each and Pallo led the Ducks with three caused turnovers. Goalkeeper Cassidy Eckert had eight saves and 13 goals allowed on 27 shots faced.
"We knew this was coming. I have been saying the whole year, this team has so much fight and perseverance in them and they have overcome adversity time and time again, but today they believed. They played a whole 60 minutes and it was some of the best lacrosse we've played. I said in my pregame speech, this was a decision. They decided that this was the game and they were going to leave everything out on the field, and they did it. It was a full team effort, from the week of preparation to the final horn. They deserved that, they earned that. And I'm proud of them," explained Head Coach Kylee White. "I thought Reilly played some of the best defense I've seen her play all year. Stepping out, following the game plan, and being disciplined. Mia was on it with the draws, knew exactly where to put it and our team followed her. Avery stepped in and played a fantastic game. It wasn't just a one person game. There was a different level of focus, you could see it from the sidelines, they were just dialed in today. They played tough and Oregon played tough. That was a battle until literally the last two seconds. We fought so hard to get into this conference, to get this first win, it means so much because it's not just about this group, it's about everyone who came before us, it's huge."
STAT OF THE GAME
The Aztecs' five assists tonight are the most since March 1 at Campbell.
THE NOTE
This victory is the Aztecs first PAC-12 Conference win.
THE NOTE II
Victoria Rankin and Caitlin Boughton have entered the record book for most draw controls in a season (52, T-9th) and most saves in a season (119, 8th) respectively, and have room to climb with two games left in the regular season.
UP NEXT
The Aztecs travel to Berkeley to face the California Bears on Saturday April 20.