Setting the Scene: The reigning seven-time Northwest Conference Champion Lutes honor their senior class today, hosting Oregon rival George Fox in the final home game of the regular season.
Series History: Pacific Lutheran and George Fox have met 61 times on the soccer pitch since the series began during the 1991 season with the Lutes holding a 42-15-4 edge in the all-time series.
PLU has won four straight and is unbeaten (26-0-2) in the last 28 meetings, a streak dating back to the 2009 season. The two teams last met in Newberg back on Oct. 5 with Hannah Cecil scoring twice in a 4-1 victory.
About the Lutes: Pacific Lutheran (11-1-4, 10-0-2 NWC) dropped four spots to 21st in this week's NCAA Division III Coaches' Poll despite being unbeaten in its last 14 games.
PLU sits firmly atop the league standings, enjoying a nine-point spread on second place rivals University of Puget Sound and Whitworth University with four games to play.
The Lutes took care of business last Sunday, opening up their final homestand of the year with a 3-1 victory over Lewis & Clark College. The visiting Pioneers took an early lead on an own goal in the 13th minute but it was all Lutes after that with Julia Causbie netting the game winner in the 27th minute before Carmen Kiewert tallied the game winner in the 33rd minute. Hannah Cecil tallied the assist on Kiewert's goal before adding an insurance score in the 54th minute.
11 Lutes have scored a goal this season while 13 total PLU players have tallied a point through the opening 16 games of the year.
Hannah Cecil is the NWC's leading scorer with 10 goals and 23 total points with Julia Causbie second on the team in points (20) and the team leader in assists (10). Bella Hanna adds six goals and 13 points while Kayden Hulquist, Olivia Boehm, and Ally Tattar have all found the back of the net more than once this fall.
Abby Winkler has been the steady presence in goal, playing all but nine minutes in goal this fall. Winkler has made 58 saves on the season with a 0.82 goals against average and seven clean sheets to her name. Her seven shutouts ranks 31st nationally and leads the NWC.
About the Bruins: George Fox (5-8-3, 2-7-3 NWC) heads into the weekend looking to snap a four match winless streak (0-3-1). The Bruins got two goals from Liv Ham in a 3-1 victory over Lewis & Clark College on Oct. 13 but have struggled since, getting shutout in its next three games against Whitman College (1-0), Whitworth (3-0), and Willamette (0-0). Last Sunday GFU scored twice but it wasn't enough in a 3-2 setback at Pacific.
Becca Kozak has five of the Bruins' 16 goals this season, leading the team in both goals and points (12). Liv Ham adds four goals while Alexis Greer and Taylor Ho are tied for the team lead in assists with three.
Emily Robey is the team's top goalkeeper, boasting a 1.54 goals against average with 88 saves on the season and six shutouts.
Home Sweet Home: East Field has been a daunting venue for opposing teams since the 2014 season, winning 30 of the last 37 on the synthetic surface. The Lutes boast a 82-9-10 record on the artificial turf over the past 10 seasons. That includes a 10-0 record in 2021 and a 8-1-1 mark at home in 2022.
Thank You Seniors!
This year's senior class has won three NWC titles and three appearances to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The 2024 seniors boast a 61-11-8 overall record over the past four seasons, including a 40-6-4 mark in Northwest Conference play and a 29-3-4 record at home on East Field.
Weekend Highlights from Around Luteville
NWC Preseason Coaches' Poll
Trailblazing NIL the D3 Way: PLU Athletics continues to lead the way nationally in Name, Image, and Likeness, unveiling the Luteville Marketplace last fall through the department's partnership with Opendorse. But don't stay on the sidelines, get involved and connect with PLU student-athletes on the Luteville Marketplace: LINK
The Luteville Marketplace is the first dedicated NIL marketplace in Division III on the Opendorse platform that directly connects student-athletes with fans, supporters, and business partners in an easy to use website.
Last spring PLU became just the second Division III school in the nation and the first school in any division in the State of Washington to partner with Athlete's Thread. Athlete's Thread allows every Lute student-athlete to sell customizable gear and jerseys with their name and number and receive monetary compensation for a portion of each sale. Check out the link above to order your gear today!
Stay connected to your favorite teams by downloading the official mobile app of the Pacific Lutheran University athletic department powered by SIDEARM Sports, available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
Featuring real-time news alerts, schedules, exclusive multimedia content, gameday details and more, the new PLU Athletics app is free and compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
Next Match:
Nov. 9 at Whitworth at 1:45 p.m.
PLU Non-Discrimination Policy: Pacific Lutheran University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability or age in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Title IX Coordinator Jennifer Childress-White; 253-535-7361; TitleIX@plu.edu