Lacrosse Prepares for Vegas Tournament

LAS VEGAS -- The Oregon women's lacrosse team heads to Las Vegas, Nevada, this weekend for two games against San Diego State on Friday at 7 p.m. (PT) and Fresno State on Saturday at 11 a.m. (PT).

This will be the eighth time the Ducks and Aztecs have met with San Diego State leading 4-3, while the Ducks have a 10-game win streak over the Bulldogs.

GAMBLE EARNS FIRST WIN
Oregon opened its 2019 campaign with a 13-6 win over defending Southern Conference champion Mercer on Feb. 9 at Pape Field. This also marked the first win at Oregon for head coach Chelsea Gamble. Seven Ducks scored in the first game of the season. Senior Shannon Williams led the way for the Ducks with seven points off of two goals and five assists, while senior Julia Taylor and sophomore Claire Domshick scored three goals each for hat tricks. On the defensive side, freshman Rachel Hall had eight saves in her collegiate start, and junior Gracyn Elliot tallied six ground balls.

WILLIAMS NAMED PAC-12 OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Coming off a seven-point performance in Oregon's season opener victory against Mercer, Williams was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week on Feb. 11 for the second time in her career. The Bel Air, Md., native netted two goals and tallied five assists for her fifth career performance with seven or more points. Williams leads the Pac-12 Conference in points (7) and assists (5). Nationally, the senior ranks third in assists and No. 12 in points. Williams' performance against Mercer also moved her up to No. 4 on Oregon's all-time points list with 196 points.

OREGON TO HOST PAC-12 TOURNAMENT
Oregon has been selected as the site of the 2019 Pac-12 Women's Lacrosse Tournament, a four-day event from April 25-28. The Ducks finished their first season in the Pac-12 Conference in 2018 with a conference mark of 4-6 and an overall record of 9-9. Oregon concluded its season in the second round of the inaugural Pac-12 Tournament when it fell to Colorado, 6-16, on April 27, 2018. Stanford went on to become the 2018 Pac-12 Women's Lacrosse Tournament champions.

SEASON SCHEDULE
The upcoming 2019 season will be filled with unique challenges for the Ducks. Apart from playing every Pac-12 team twice, Oregon will take on four teams who made it to the NCAA Tournament last season, Mercer, Jacksonville, Stanford and Colorado. This year's schedules also offers two unique locations. The Ducks will host a tournament in Las Vegas this weekend, where they will face off against San Diego State on Feb. 15 and Fresno State on Feb. 17. Oregon will also play in a special game against Ohio State on March 30 at the U.S. Lacrosse Headquarters in Sparks, Md.

BILLER NAMED INSIDE LACROSSE PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN
Midfielder Lexy Biller was named an Inside Lacrosse 2019 preseason honorable mention all-America selection. The all-America nod is only the third such honor in program history for Oregon. Brittany Read was selected for second-team honors in 2018, while Jen May received third team honors in 2008. The preseason award is based off Biller's 2018 accomplishments.

Biller made her mark on Oregon in 2018, breaking a program record with 114 draw controls and tying the school record for draw controls in a single game with 10 draw controls against No. 7 Syracuse on Feb. 18. Biller's 6.33 draw controls per game average ranked second in the Pac-12 Conference and 13th in the NCAA. She also registered 11 goals and three assists during the 2019 season.

NEW COACHING FACES
Head coach Chelsea Gamble is in her first season as Oregon's head coach. Gamble served as the offensive coordinator for Pac-12 opponent Stanford for the last four seasons (2015-18). While there, she helped lead Stanford to a pair of conference championships, including the inaugural Pac-12 Tournament title in 2018, and three NCAA appearances.

Gamble brings with her defensive coordinator Nicole Price and offensive coordinator Anna Salemo. Price arrives at Oregon after spending the last two seasons as an assistant coach at Dartmouth. Last season, Price helped Dartmouth to qualify for its first Ivy League tournament since 2013. Salemo, a former Stanford player under Gamble, spent the 2018 season at Fort Lewis College, helping the SkyHawks to a No. 4 ranking in the Rocky Mountain Conference.

HALL NAMED TO U.S. WOMEN'S U19 TEAM
Freshman goalkeeper Rachel Hall was one of 23 players named to the 2019 U.S. Women's U19 National Team. Hall made the roster after serving on the training team in August and participating in the Fall and Spring Classics in October and January.

Hall comes to Oregon after being selected as a top prospect on the Inside Lacrosse watch list. She last represented the United States at the U.S. Lacrosse Women's National Team Tournament in 2015. A two-time all-state selection out of Texas, Hall also participated in the Under Armor All-American games from 2016-18.

BREAKING DOWN THE ROSTER
The Ducks return 18 letterwinners from last season. Six members of last year's starting lineup remain, including Lexy Biller, Caroline Jaworski, Madeline Reece, Julia Taylor, Mandi Trostle and Shannon Williams.

Including Stony Brook transfer Marlee Moon Gaddy, the Ducks added 10 newcomers to this year's squad. Gaddy played one season for the Seawolves, seeing action in eight games to record four goals and three ground balls.

SCOUTING THE DUCKS' OPPONENTS
UO's first opponent this weekend is San Diego State. The Aztecs finished the 2018 season with an 11-8 record and a conference championship. San Diego State won the MPSF Championship with an 11-10 triumph over UC Davis on April 29, 2018. This will be the eighth time the Ducks and Aztecs have met with San Diego State leading 4-3.

The Ducks' second opponent is Fresno State. The Bulldogs ended their 2018 season with an overall record of 9-9. Fresno State started the 2019 season with a 14-12 victory over Massachusetts Lowell on Feb. 10. The Ducks currently have a 10-game win streak over the Bulldogs.

LOOKING BACK AT 2018
The Ducks finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 9-9. They ended the season with a regular season with a conference mark of 4-6. Oregon made it to the second round of the inaugural Pac-12 Tournament after defeating California, 22-9. The team ended the season by falling to No. 14 Colorado, 16-6.

UO had five players named to all-conference teams. Jill Zubillaga took home first team allocates, while Mariah Gatti, Brittany Reed, Cambi Cukar and Shannon Williams were named All-Pac-12 second team.