The worst may be over for the Ducks soccer team, though they say their work has just begun.
Oregon (7-6 overall, 0-2 Pacific-10 Conference) kicked off its Pac-10 schedule against two ranked teams – including top-ranked UCLA – on the road last weekend.
After playing two conference opponents who combined own just two losses and 19 wins, the Ducks host Arizona State at 7 p.m. today and Arizona at 1 p.m. Sunday on Papé Field.
“It is great to challenge yourself with the very best because it sets the bar high for us,” head coach Tara Erickson said. “But, yeah, it is nice to check the big ones off our list.”
Make no mistake though: Erickson and her team don’t think they are in the clear now.
“I think from the top down, from ourselves – the coaching staff – to the players, we put ourselves in a position where these are must-win games for us,” Erickson said. “And we knew that all along. These will be important games and we will battle hard.”
The Ducks, whose goal from the outset has been to earn an NCAA Tournament berth, already have as many losses as they did last season, when the team finished 12-6-2; however, four of those six this year have come against teams ranked in the NSCAA top 10.
The Wildcats (5-8, 0-2) are also winless in conference action. They lost 3-1 to Washington State and 2-0 to Washington last weekend.
Meanwhile, Arizona State swept the Washington schools. The Sun Devils (8-5, 2-0) torched the Huskies 3-0 and squeaked by the Cougars 1-0 in overtime.
The Ducks are 3-6-2 all-time versus Arizona State and 6-3-1 against Arizona.
Last year, Oregon began its conference season by defeating then-No. 24 Arizona 2-1 and Arizona State 1-0, with Nicole Garbin scoring all three of the Ducks’ goals. Oregon would go on to only lose one conference match, which came against No. 17 Stanford late in the season.
The only thing the Ducks can do now is give everything they’ve got, senior forward Tiffany Smith said.
“We know we have to win from here on out,” Smith said. “I know we’ll just keep working hard because we weren’t expected to win on paper (against USC or UCLA).”
Notes
Junior Jen Cameron, who missed three games after suffering a concussion against Portland, will be back at the defensive midfielder spot. The starter’s return means that midfielder Danielle Sweeney can move back up to the attacking center midfielder position and Jessica Goodell can rotate from the middle to the outside.
“It should be very helpful to get (Cameron) back in the attacking role,” Erickson said.
The match against the Bruins will be rebroadcast on Fox Sports Northwest at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
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