Setting the Scene: The Lutes open their home slate after two straight weeks on the road, hosting in-state rival Whitworth at East Field.
Series History: This will be the 75th all-time meeting between the Lutes and Pirates with the series tilted 33-32-9 in favor of PLU. The Lutes have won five straight, registering a pair of 3-1 victories last fall over Whitworth.
About the Lutes: Pacific Lutheran (1-1-2) enjoys the comforts of home after spending the first four games on the road. The Lutes opened the year with a 2-1 win over Colorado College on Sept. 1 before earning a 2-2 draw with Nebraska Wesleyan two days later.
Last weekend, the Lutes fell short 2-1 to Emory (Ga.) in Salem, Oregon before earning 2-2 tie with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges. Trevor Thompson scored a goal in each game and on Monday was tabbed the NWC Offensive Player of the Week.
Trevor Thompson leads the Lutes in points through the opening four games of the season with five (2 goals and 1 assist). Craig Johnson and Sammy Tafolla both have a pair of goals while Robby Guyer leads the team in assists with two helpers on the young season.
About the Pirates: Whitworth (2-2) heads into league play looking to snap a two-game slide. The Pirates opened the season at home, pummeling Walla Walla 7-0 on Sept. 1 before edging Northwest 3-2 on Sept. 3.
The Pirates fortunes were reversed last weekend in California, falling 3-0 to California Lutheran and 2-1 to California-Santa Cruz.
Cole Friesen leads the Pirates' offense, scoring five goals on the season, including a hat-trick in the opener against Walla Walla. Eric Shaporda is second on the team in both goals (two) and assists (one) while Christian Pumpelly leads the team in assists with two.
Three keepers have rotated in net this season with Anton Dershem seeing the most action with three starts. Dershem had a 1.50 goals against average with six saves while Aiden Chase has four stops on the year.
Home Cooking: East Field has been a daunting place for opponents to play since the 2015 season with the Lutes holding a 50-15-7 advantage in games played on campus. That includes a 25-7-3 mark over the past three seasons. Last fall the Lutes were 10-1 on the home turf.
NWC Preseason Coaches' Poll
Summer Lutes
PLU men's soccer student-athlete Elijah Singleton had a busy summer serving as an intern in a lab at the Fred Hutch Cancer Center. Learn more about his daily routine in the video below.
5th Year Lutes
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.
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 Home Match:
Sept. 17 vs. Whitman at 2:30 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