East Coast flare brought out the best in the Ducks.
Traveling to the lacrosse hotbed of the United States, Oregon emerged victorious. Three Morgan McCarthy goals led the Ducks (4-0) to a 17-9 win over Rider (4-1) in a battle of unbeaten teams.
Both teams were competitive throughout, but seven-straight Ducks’ scores at the end of the first half and start of the second proved to be the difference. The Broncs gave Oregon its first deficit of the season, but ultimately defensive and scoring woes were too much to overcome.
“I’m from New York so I have a lot of family coming,” McCarthy said last week. “I know a lot of us are from the East Coast, so we are all super excited for that.”
The enthusiasm was clear. Oregon played one of its most complete games of the season against their fiercest competition yet.
In what was a game defined by runs, both teams traded two-goal sprees early, knotting the score at 4-4 with 13:08 to go in the first half.
Rider was able to score the majority of its goals through the five-hole of goaltender Thayer Hubbard. Most of the Broncs’ shots were low, which Hubbard struggled with early.
Sydney Soto was particularly noticeable for the Ducks, showcasing an active stick and forcing a turnover which set up Lauren Rismani’s fourth goal of the season.
Kylee Garcia was the Broncs’ main catalyst, as a slick spin-move snuck her past the defense and allowed her to score her third goal of the day with 8:05 remaining in the first half, knotting the score 5-5.
Oregon was unable to extend its lead mainly due to 11 first-half turnovers. The Ducks were pestered in their own zone and struggled to set up at times.
Rider’s Maggie Hance scored from a few feet out and put Oregon behind for the first time all season.
They trailed for all of 47 seconds. Goals from Rachel Pallo and Madysn Sweeney put Oregon back on top before Garcia added another low-shot score for the Broncs — who continued to shoot low on Hubbard.
Oregon’s offensive barrage quickly responded, adding a pair of last-minute goals from Riley Taylor and Jenae Sperling that gave the Ducks momentum and a 9-7 lead going into the half.
The Ducks wouldn’t stop there. At one point in the game, Oregon won 10 of 13 draws and used them to build momentum the Ducks used to score the half’s first five goals.
Oregon entered the game leading the nation in draw controls, but struggled out of the gate losing seven of the game’s first eight. The Ducks quickly surged back and finished the game with a 15-13 advantage.
Katie Walsh looked for a moment to have ended Oregon’s run with a score, but her dangerous stick follow through was deemed a yellow card, putting the Ducks on the woman advantage.
The second half was not favorable to the Broncs — who were held scoreless in the third quarter while Oregon tallied four to build an 13-7 lead to take into the final frame.
Marist was able to get a pair back in the fourth quarter, but three more Ducks’ goals continued the onslaught.
The start of Head Coach Jessica Drummond’s tenure as head coach has been a rousing success. With the victory, the Ducks have now matched their best start in program history at 4-0.
The first game of a trying East Coast trip was a rousing success for the undefeated Ducks. Oregon travels to No. 22 Rutgers this Sunday for a matchup slated for 8 a.m.
