Ducks Top Mercer in Season Opener

Saturday, February 9

Eugene, OR

1:00 PM

University of Oregon

1-0

Mercer

0-1

Mercer

Oregon

Photo by: @EricEvansPhoto

02/09/19 | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score Box Score - Mercer

EUGENE, Ore. – Highlighted by scoring eight of the first nine goals of the second half, the Oregon women's lacrosse team opened its 2019 campaign with a 13-6 win over defending Southern Conference champion Mercer on Saturday at Pape Field. It also marked the first win at Oregon for head coach Chelsea Gamble.

The Ducks have now won six consecutive season openers and six in a row in the month of February.

How It Happened: Oregon led 5-3 at the end of the first half before breaking away on a 6-0 run to bring the score to 11-3. Five different Ducks scored during the game-changing run, including two from senior Julia Taylor, while Oregon gathered six consecutive draw controls. Taylor's first goal came on a highlight-reel behind the back shot, while her second came just 20 seconds later for her third career hat trick. Senior Shannon Williams supplied three assists during the run, while also scoring once. Freshman Carlie Leach and senior Madeline Reece also contributed their first career goals during the 6-0 run that absorbed the first 13 minutes of the second half.

Following a Mercer goal, Oregon was back on the attack with two consecutive goals from sophomore Claire Domshick and Williams. Domshick's goal marked her first career hat trick.

Freshman Rachel Hall made her first collegiate start in goal. The U19 U.S. Women's Lacrosse team member tallied eight saves in nearly 58 minutes of play.

Notables: Seven different played scored a goal for Oregon … Williams' two goals and five assists marked her fifth career game with seven or more points … Five of Williams' seven points came in the second half … Freshman Jamie Level registered five of Oregon's 10 draw controls … Junior Gracyn Elliott tallied a team-high six ground balls … Oregon won the draw control battle in the second half, 8-4 … The Ducks outshot Mercer, 35-23, and forced the Bears into 24 turnovers.

Quotable: Head Coach Chelsea Gamble
On her first win at Oregon:
"I'm excited to be coaching this group and proud of our first win. I think we had a slow start, but we came out of the second half with some confidence. We have a lot of underclassmen that started today, and I think they just needed to feel a little bit of a flow. I think once that happened, they felt what we've been working towards these past five months. I'm really excited to see how we can build off of this win going into next game."

Senior Attacker Shannon Williams
On the second half run:
"We came out really strong in the second half, and I think our chemistry looked great. Our defense really stepped up to help our offense calm down. I am really proud of everyone."

Up Next: Oregon will be back in action next weekend when it plays a pair of games in Las Vegas. The Ducks will open the two-game trip against San Diego State on Friday, Feb. 15, followed by a showdown with Fresno State on Sunday.