Ducks Face Cal In Rubber Match To Open Inaugural Pac-12 Tournament

EUGENE, Ore. - The Oregon women's lacrosse team is set to take on California in the opening round of the inaugural Pac-12 Tournament, taking place in Boulder, Colo., beginning Thursday. The Ducks and Golden Bears have squared off twice already this season with both teams recording one win. The rubber match will kick-off the tournament at 12 p.m. PT.

GAME 17: OREGON (8-8, 4-6) vs. CALIFORNIA (6-11, 2-8)
Thursday, April 26 | 12 p.m. PT
Boulder, Colo. | Prentup Field
Live Stats: cubuffs.com
Live Video: Pac-12 Network
Tournament Central: pac-12.com/sport/womens-lacrosse

LAST TIME OUT
The Ducks had a rough road stretch to close out the regular season, dropping their final three games of the year. After falling to California and No. 12 Stanford, Oregon wrapped up the year at No. 15 Colorado this past weekend. The Ducks and Buffs traded goals early in the game, but Colorado closed out the first half on a 6-1 run to take an 11-6 at the end of the opening period. CU carried that momentum into the second half, outscoring UO 8-3 to record the final score of 19-9. Colorado outshot the Ducks 44-28 in the game while recording 17 ground balls in the second half compared to seven for UO. Senior Mariah Gatti led the team with four goals, while senior Cambi Cukar finished with four assists for the sixth time this season.

RE-WRITING HISTORY
Despite finishing the regular season with a .500 winning percentage, the current Oregon squad may be one of the best in recent history. With at least one game still to play, the Ducks have set, or can set, seven different single-season records. Sophomore transfer Lexy Biller opened the floodgates by shattering the UO draw control record. She has recorded 105 draw controls this season, nearly 30 more than the previous record of 77 set by Carly O'Connell in 2014, which is already more than halfway to the UO career record of 209 held by Jen May.

Senior Jill Zubillaga has the opportunity to set two single-season records. She has already surpassed Shannon Williams shots attempted mark of 112 set last season with 120 shots on the year. Zubillaga needs just one goal against Cal to become the new single-season record holder with 52. With three of her five records from last season either broken or on the verge, Williams can make it five for five by breaking her own total points record from 2017. So far this season, the Bel Air, Md., native has recorded 65 points (37 goals, 27 assists) and needs just seven more points to tie her record of 72.

In just her first season with the Ducks senior goalkeeper Brittany Read has made a lasting impression in the net. Not only did she break the UO single-game record with 10 ground balls at Vanderbilt, but she is second on the single-season list with 52 on the year. She needs seven more ground balls to tie Carrie Bateman's record of 59 set in 2006. The Gibbsboro, N.J., native is also second on the single-season saves list with 153 so far this year and needs 14 more saves to tie Anna Poponyak's record of 167.

Senior Cambi Cukar is already UO's career assist leader, but this year she continued to add to her legacy becoming the only player in UO history to appear four different times on the single-season assists record list. With 43 assists on the year, she currently sits in third and needs just four more to pass her own record of 46 set in 2016.

OFFENSIVE POWERHOUSE
The Ducks remain one of the top offensive teams in the Pac-12. As a team, the Ducks are third in the conference, behind Stanford and Colorado, averaging 12.5 goals per game. UO is the only team in the Pac-12 with three players in the top 10 for goals and points per game this season. The Ducks are also second in the league in assists per game (5.8) and shooting percentage (.440), while ranking third with an 18.38 points per game average.

FROM TAKING ON ATTACKERS TO GOALKEEPERS
Senior Jill Zubillaga has played on both ends of the field during her career at UO. After starting as a defender her freshman and sophomore seasons, she was moved into an attacking role following the hiring of head coach Katrina Dowd. The Kennett Square, Pa., native has shined as an attacker, scoring 70 goals in her two seasons up top for UO. She currently leads the team with 51 goals this season ranking her second in the Pac-12 in goals scored per game. She has recorded three or more goals in 10 games this season, including a six-game stretch from March 26 to April 13, during which she netted a career-high six goals against Arizona State.

DRAWING A MASTERPIECE
In a recent interview, head coach Katrina Dowd decisively stated what the key to upsetting USC was, "draw controls." And she could not have been more accurate as UO outdrew USC 22-9 in the game, tying the Oregon single-game draw control record. Oregon has outdrawn opponents 231-187 this year, ranking second in the Pac-12 with a 14.3 draw controls per game average. Sophomore Lexy Biller has been a major factor in UO's dominance in the circle, recording a program-record 105 draw controls so far this year. Jill Zubillaga is second on the team with 45 draw controls this year, recording 31 over the last five games. The Ducks are 6-3 this season when outdrawing their opponent.

SPREADING THE WEALTH
The Ducks have been extremely unselfish this season, spreading the ball around to become one of the top assisting teams in the Pac-12. So far this year, UO averages 5.8 assists per game to rank second in the conference. Attackers Cambi Cukar and Shannon Williams rank first and third, respectively, in the conference for assists per game. Both Ducks rank among the nation's top 50, with Cukar's 43 assists placing her fifth while Williams' 28 puts her in a tie for 40th. As a team, Oregon needs only six more assists to break 100 total assists on the year for the third straight season.

POINTING TO A RECORD CAREER FOR WILLIAMS
Only in her junior season, Shannon Williams continues to be an offensive juggernaut for UO, continuing to improve in all facets of her offensive gameplay. After breaking the single-season points and goals scored record last year, Williams continues to contribute to the UO offense in scoring while improving on her distribution. The Bel Air, Md., native leads the team with 65 points this season recording 37 goals and 28 assists. She currently averages 4.1 points per game, placing her second on the single-season list and third in the pac-12. Throughout her three-year career at UO, Williams has averaged 3.6 points per game, which would rank first on the career points per game list. Williams is already seventh on the career points list with 180. If she can record six points during the final stretch of the season, she will jump up to fourth on the career list.

BETWEEN THE PIPES
In her first season as a Duck, transfer Brittany Read has put up big numbers in the net for UO. She has recorded double-digit saves in nine games this year, including a season-high 15 at USC. Her 153 saves this year ranks fourth on the UO career saves list. Currently, she averages 9.6 saves per game to lead the Pac-12 and rank 20th in the NCAA.

She has held teams to 10 goals or less in six games including a tremendous performance at East Carolina in which she recorded nine saves in a little over 45 minutes of action. Read held the Pirates to three goals, marking not only a season-low for the Ducks, but also just one goal more than the program record. A Gibbsboro, N.J., native, Read is currently on a three-game streak of recording 10 or more saves.

SCOUTING THE DUCKS' OPPONENT
The Ducks and Golden Bears head into the postseason on level terms going 1-1 against each other during the regular season. Cal closed out the regular season with losses to both Colorado and Stanford to finish the year 6-11 overall. Redshirt sophomore Kirsten Swanson leads Cal averaging 2.4 goals per game to rank seventh in the Pac-12. Swanson was a major factor in both games against UO this season. The Ducks held her to just one goal during their 12-7 win, but Swanson came alive in the rematch, scoring five goals to help Cal win 15-13.

Draw controls will be another factor the Ducks will need to keep an eye on against Cal. In UO's win against Cal, the Ducks outdrew the Bears 13-8, but both teams recorded 15 draw controls each during Cal's 15-13 victory.

WORLD CUP PEDIGREE
Head coach Katrina Dowd won't be the only Lacrosse World Cup champion on the sidelines for the Ducks this year. Assistant coaches Michelle Tumolo and Becca Block both earned world cup gold this past summer, the first of their careers. The duo helped team USA go undefeated in tournament play, defeating Canada in the championship match.

LACROSSE BECOMES PAC-12 SPONSORED SPORT
With the establishment of the Arizona State women's lacrosse program, the Pac-12 was able to field the minimum number of required teams to qualify for a conference championship and NCAA tournament automatic-qualifying bid. This upcoming season, each team will play one another twice, home and away, with the first-ever Pac-12 lacrosse championships taking place in Boulder, Colo., Apr. 26-29.

THE ROAD AHEAD
The Ducks and Golden Bears will be the first two teams to play in the inaugural Pac-12 Tournament. The winner of that game will go on to face No. 1 overall seed and Pac-12 regular season champions, Colorado, Friday.