Setting the Scene: The Lutes are back at home this week, hosting a pair of midweek non-conference games against schools from Southern California. Tonight's showdown at East Field brings California Lutheran University to Tacoma.
About the Lutes: Katrina Moran scored a trio of goals in the opening quarter but it wasn't enough to stave off a pesky opponent as PLU fell short 12-8 to host University of Puget Sound in a non-conference tilt at Peyton Field on Saturday.
"We saw lots of improvements from game two to game three, showing that we can compete," said Head Coach Melanie Rizzotti.
"We're building momentum and getting better every day."
Moran needed just 91 seconds to tally the first goal but the host Loggers (2-1) scored the next three, enjoying a two-goal cushion with 6:45 left in the first quarter. Moran scored twice just over two minutes apart to tie the game before Kathleen Swankowski tallied an unassisted goal as the Lutes (1-2) held a 4-3 edge after 15 minutes of play.
Issabella Marchio scored in the first minute of the second quarter off a pass from Moran to make it 5-3 but the Loggers would score the final six goals of the half, taking a 9-5 lead into the break, including scoring two in the final 37 seconds.
Taylee Alldredge scored twice in the second half and assisted on Swankowski's second goal of the day but the Lutes were unable to wrestle the lead away from Puget Sound who scored a player up goal with 2:01 remaining to secure the 12-8 victory.
Kassie Diller made eight saves in goal while leading PLU in ground balls with four on the day. In addition to a goal and an assist, Alldredge had three ground balls and caused four turnovers.
Saturday's game was a non-conference contest with the two teams squaring off again in a Northwest Conference game on April 9 at PLU's East Field.
Seven Lutes have scored a goal this season while eight players have registered a point. Taylee Alldredge is the Lutes' top goalscorer with nine goals and one assist through the opening three games. Katrina Moran and Isabella Marchio both have four goals while Annie Latimer is the team leader in assists with five.
Kassie Diller has played every minute in goal this season, making 28 saves and boasting a .431 save percentage.
About the Regals: California Lutheran (3-3, 1-3 SCIAC) heads to Tacoma riding a modest two-game win streak.
The Regals started the season by dropping three of their first four with the lone victory a 17-3 drubbing of Whittier College. Cal Lu fell 24-4 to 10th-ranked Pomona-Pitzer Colleges on March 1 before earning non-league home wins at the expense of Albion College (16-13) and Alfred University (18-14) last week.
Josie Oparanaku is the go-to goalscorer for Cal Lu, finding the back of the net 17 times in the opening six games. Marina Diaz has 16 goals and four assists while Madison Soforenko and Meghan Angus add 12 and 10 goals, respectively. Angus also has a team-best five assists.
Bella Bravo has seen the most action in goal this season, making 58 save with a .433 save percentage.
East Field Magic: PLU's East Field has been a tough place for opposing team's to play at during the 2024-2025 academic year. The Lute women's lacrosse squad along with the Northwest Conference Champion men's and women's soccer teams have combined for a 15-1-7 record on the turf this academic year.
A Season of Firsts: Women's lacrosse became the first new varsity sport for the University since 1996 when the team played its first game back on Feb. 16. That game saw a lot of milestones. First goal was provided by Taylee Alldredge, the first assist was claimed by Annie Latimer. Meanwhile, later that week Kassie Diller became the program's first NWC Athlete of the Week.
A Hero on & off the diamond
PLU baseball's Carson Burke hit three home runs in one weekend before boarding a plane to Houston to donate life-saving stem cells to a blood cancer patient in need. Learn more about Burke's incredible story...
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 Home Game:
Mar. 13: Occidental at 7 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
Credits:
Lindsey Clark