The Oregon women’s lacrosse team (2-8) travels to North Carolina to face the Tar Heels on Friday and Davidson on Saturday.
North Carolina is ranked fifth in the nation and boasts an 8-2 record. Yet Oregon’s head coach Jen Larsen seems unfazed.
“We’re just going to play our hearts out, play 60 minutes of intense lacrosse and play better than we played in our previous game,” she said.
Larsen said she doesn’t approach games with the win-loss columns in mind.
“I like to take things one half at a time. I don’t talk about wins. If we win but didn’t play well, then that’s not an accomplishment,” she said.
The Tar Heels’ only two losses this season have come at the hands of top-ranked Northwestern and defending NCAA Division I champion Virginia.
North Carolina narrowly missed out on a bid to the 2004 NCAA Tournament, posting a
9-7 record overall. The Tar Heels retained nine of the 12 players from their starting lineup last year, as well as seven of their top eight scorers.
North Carolina’s experience could prove overwhelming for the Ducks, who are by all standards a young team. Fully aware of her team’s youth, Larsen said she doesn’t feel any pressure to produce wins right now.
“Since it’s our very first year, we’re all new to the program, and everyone is just trying to learn and improve together,” she said.
The Ducks are building a team of the future, and games against tough teams like North Carolina right now could lead to more wins in
coming years.
Until then, Larsen is willing to be patient and watch her team grow.
“At times, I do wish we had some upperclassmen. But at the same time, I’m really happy with the group we have, because this is by far the most motivated group of girls whom I’ve ever worked with,” she said.
After facing North Carolina, the Ducks will face an opponent on more equal footing in Davidson. The Wildcats have started this season 3-5 after finishing the 2004 season with a disappointing 4-13 record .
“What I want to focus on this weekend is countering our opponents’ scoring, not having dry spells of our own and finishing strong. Regardless of what happens, I want us to play a full game and just keep pushing forward,” said Larsen.