Soccer Hosts CSUN Sunday

Oregon and Cal State Northridge meet for the first time in 15 years Sunday at noon at Papé Field (B1G+). The Matadors play at Denver Thursday before traveling to Eugene.

ONE-TIMERS
• All five of Oregon's goals in 2024 have been scored by a different player - Cameron Bourne, Taylor Bryan, Carly Cormack,Haley McWhirter and Livvy Moore.
• The Ducks' six assists have been recorded by five different players - two by Grace Mensah and one each for Sydney Hennessey, Lauren Kenny, Lexi Lerwick and McWhirter.
• GK Maddy Goldberg is tied for second in the Big Ten and 12th nationally with two shutouts. Goldberg also leads the Big Ten and is tied for second nationally in minutes played (360:00) and is sixth in the league in total saves (12).
• F Grace Mensah is tied for fourth in the conference with two assists.
• Oregon welcomed 16 newcomers to the team for the fall - 8 freshmen, a sophomore, 3 seniors and 4 fifth years - 13 of whom have seen action.
• Seven of Oregon's eight transfers have NCAA Tournament experience, including NCAA Champion Makoto Nezu (Santa Clara).
• Six players currently on the Ducks' roster are working on their Master's degrees.
• Oregon played the 15th-hardest schedule in the nation last season after navigating 11th-toughest schedule nationally in 2022.
• #ProDucks. Oregon currently has three alums playing professionally in the NWSL: Chardonnay Curran (Chicago Red Stars), Croix Soto (Kansas City Current) and Chai Cortez (San Diego Wave).

WEEK 2: A NUMBER OF FIRSTS
The Ducks dropped a pair of matches, losing 2-1 at New Mexico State (Aug. 22) and 3-1 at New Mexico (Aug. 25), but registered a number of firsts on the second weekend of the season. Cameron Bourne scored her first career goal (New Mexico), while Haley McWhirter found the net for the first time as a Duck (NMSU). It was her 15th career goal as a collegian. Sydney Hennessey assisted on McWhirter's goal, her first helper as a Duck.

WEEK 1: DUCKS OPEN SEASON 2-0 FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2018
Oregon got the 2024 season off to a strong start by defeating Seattle, 1-0, in the Aug. 15 season opener and then topping Portland State, 2-0, Aug. 18. Goalkeeper Maddy Goldberg posted back-to-back shutouts to earn her first two career victories. Taylor Bryan, a transfer from Virginia Tech, hit the game-winner versus Seattle in the 73rd minute. Lexi Lerwick, a transfer from Washington State, sent a ball into the box from midfield to Grace Mensah, who dropped it to Bryan and she drove it into the left corner of the net. Livvy Moore scored her first career goal in the 59th minute against Portland State. She crossed the ball ahead to Haley McWhirter, who then returned the ball to Moore as she crashed down on the goal and finished by tucking the ball just inside the near post. Freshman Carly Cormack added an insurance score in the 70th minute. Lauren Kenny drew Portland State's attention with the ball in the middle of the box. She then dropped a pass outside on the box to Cormack, who chipped a shot over everyone into the goal from 20 yards out. The win against Seattle snapped a 26-match winless for the Ducks that dated to a 1-0 win at Utah on Oct. 6, 2022.

NEW FACES
Oregon welcomed a mix of young and veteran new players for 2024. Among the 16 newcomers are eight freshmen, a sophomore three seniors and four fifth-year players. Thirteen newcomers have seen action so far.

"GRANDMA SEASONS"
Coined by Taylor Bryan in the aftermath of her game-winner against Seattle, Oregon has seven players in their "grandma season" (fifth year) of eligibility thanks to the NCAA's Covid policy. In addition to Bryan, others playing their fifth season in college include Sydney Cradle, Lucy Green, Sydney Hennessey, Haley McWhirter, Makoto Nezu and Jayd Sprague. All seven of those players have NCAA Tournament experience - Bryan at Virginia Tech, Cradle with Towson, Green at Mississippi, Hennessey with Tennessee, McWhirter at Mississippi State, Nezu an NCAA champion with Santa Clara and Sprague at Idaho. Because they played in the 2020 Covid season and subsequently redshirted, both Bryan and Hennessey actually have another year of eligibility remaining and could return for a sixth season.