Lacrosse Primed For Season Opener

EUGENE, Ore. – Oregon lacrosse begins its 2024 season with a matchup against Youngstown State on Friday at 5 p.m. PT at Papé Field.

GAME INFO
When: Friday, Feb. 9
Where: Papé Field | Eugene, Ore.
Time: 5 p.m. PT
Watch: http://pac-12.com/live/university-oregon-3
Live Stats: https://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=499029

LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED
Oregon begins its 2024 season with a matchup against Youngstown State on Friday at Papé Field. This is the first ever meeting between the Ducks and the Penguins, who finished the 2023 season with a 6-12 record. Oregon has won nine of its last 10 season-opening matches, outscoring opponents by a 149-72 margin in those contests. The Ducks are opening the season at home for the seventh time in the last eight seasons.

A NEW ERA BEGINS
Oregon Lacrosse begins its first season under head coach Jessica Drummond, who was selected to lead the program in June 2023. Drummond - an Oregon alumna who played for the Ducks from 2009-12 - returns to Eugene after spending the last seven years as both an assistant coach and the associate head coach at Vermont. In her four years as associate head coach, Drummond helped the Catamounts to a combined 32-23 record and their first American East Tournament championship in 2022.

SENSATIONAL SENIOR
Senior midfielder Morgan McCarthy is back for her senior season after becoming the first Duck to be named to the Pac-12 All-Tournament Team in back-to-back seasons. McCarthy was also named an All-Pac-12 second-team selection for a second consecutive season after leading Oregon with career-highs in goals (37) and points (40).

One of 10 players in UO history with 50 career goals and 100 draw controls.
Led Oregon in draw controls (44), points (40) and goals (37) as a junior in 2023.
Sixth in program history with 132 career draw controls.
Recorded seven hat tricks in 2023.

CALL ON THE CAPTAINS
Oregon named six captains for the 2023 season:

Lexie Likins returns for her fifth year after being one of three UO players to start all 17 games last season.
Alex Matsuoka has represented her home nation of Canada at the World Lacrosse Super Sixes twice.
» Morgan McCarthy has logged 62 goals and 113 draw controls across the past two seasons. Anna Simmons - the youngest of the captains as a sophomore - played in all 17 games and scored 10 goals as a freshman.

Sydnie Soto started 15 games last season and caused nine turnovers while scooping up 17 ground balls.
Madysyn Sweeney scored a goal in eight games last season, including a hat trick against Colorado.

GOOD GROUP OF GOALIES
Oregon returns both of its primary goalkeepers from last season in junior Paige Crowther and senior Cassidy Eckert. The two split time evenly in 2023, with Crowther playing 516:57 in 12 games and Eckert playing 494:59 in 11 games. The pair each feature in UO's top 10 for career save percentage, with Eckert ranking seventh (.402) and Crowther ranking eighth (.399)

Eckert ranks fifth all time in program history with 224 career saves and enters the 2024 season as the program leader in career saves per game (7.47).