In Case You Missed It
EUGENE, Ore. – One well-placed cross and one dynamic header by junior
Elyse Bennett was all Washington State (10-3-1, 3-2-1) needed to take down Oregon (4-5-5, 0-4-2) on the road Saturday night in Eugene, Ore. as the Cougs picked up a 1-0 victory to get back to their winning ways. For nearly 67 minutes, the Cougs looked like they were in for another frustrating night, dominating the Ducks on both ends of the field only to find themselves kept off the scoreboard by other-worldly defending at the mouth of the goal once again. All that changed in one classic combination as the Cougars' assist leader,
Brianna Alger, played a perfect ball across frame and to the back post where her classmate was waiting to pounce. Out-jumping her defender, Bennett skyed above the fray and drove a header across the goal line for the would-be game-winner. The goal was not without question, however, as the Ducks nearly cleared the ball off the line but were unable to stay in the field of play as the line judge signaled success for WSU. The Ducks had come away with a little luck earlier in the contest to keep the Cougs' scoreless when a
Morgan Weaver volley was cleared off the line by a Duck defender. While the Duck defense and their keeper were bunkered down under siege for much of the night, WSU's
Ella Dederick had a relatively quiet night in goal as just five shots came her way with none testing the sixth-year senior thanks to the Cougars' dominant play in the midfield and along the backline.
Coach Shulenberger Quote of the Night
"Another high level Pac-12 soccer game in which the Cougs prevailed tonight. I am proud of the effort as any road win you get in this conference is big. I am proud of the way we've been playing the last couple of weeks we just haven't scored some goals. Tonight we got one in so hopefully that will open the door for more to come. I'll take this win and move on to our tough opponents down in Southern California next week."
The Moments That Made The Match
Things You Need To Know
- Washington State earned its eighth-straight result against the Ducks and third-straight victory to improve to 14-4-6 all-time versus Oregon.
- The Cougs improved to 7-2 on the year in one-goal contests.
- The goal by Elyse Bennett snapped a 266:53 minute scoreless streak for the Cougars. During that time WSU outshot its opponents 60-18 with opponents coming up with 21 saves including five team saves.
- Bennett picked up her fourth goal of the year and moved into a tie with Averie Collins for second with 12 total points.
- Brianna Alger picked up her team-best seventh assist, tied for third most in the Pac-12. Her seven assists ties for seventh all-time in WSU single season history along with seven other players. Her next assist will move her into a tie for third.
- Morgan Weaver picked up her third assist on the year as well as the senior forward initiated the scoring play with a fee to Alger on the right side.
- The Cougars' defense allowed just five total shots, none on goal in 90 minutes against the Ducks. The last time the Cougs held a team without a shot on goal was Aug. 19, 2018 in a 1-0, overtime, win over Grand Canyon.
- Super senior Ella Dederick and her defense earned their seventh shutout of the year, six complete shutouts for Dederick with one shared shutout. She has 26 total shutouts in her career, second most in WSU history.
- WSU remains on the road with a pair of contests in Los Angeles beginning Thursday, Oct. 24 at USC. The Cougs and the Trojans will kickoff at 3 p.m. on the Pac-12 Network.
